What If Everything Was Gone
by BowtieJunkie
Summary: Robin's dreams have always been just that... Dreams. But something has changed. Somehow they don't just feel like figments of his imagination. It's getting harder took look at people the same and his trust in the Justice League is slowly waning. -Set during Season One-
1. Prologue

Gotham was quiet. No one was on the streets, and that was wrong. All of it felt wrong. He had a twisted sense in his gut that some horrible event was taking a deep breath in advance.

_Just like he said... All gone..._

And then there was that fear, creeping up into the pit of his stomach and crawling up into his head. It was ever present, always taunting him in the back of his mind, yet he somehow had built up a tolerance, learned to ignore it over the years. But the wall was gone, gone like everyone else in this godforsaken city he called home. Gone.

_You'll always be alone._

It was like a voice, tiny and persistent, a living being, hiding in the back of his brain. He never wanted to be alone. Never. And it was his fault. He knew that because of the voice, the fear. He hated to admit it, but the voice spoke the terrible truth.

_Dead. All of them are dead. You killed them. You…_

His vision blurred and he blinked, trying to bring the world back into focus. It was in that instant, that instant of total blindness that he lost himself. And in losing himself, he lost his freedom. Barely a second and his world was turned inside out.

_"You know, your uncanny ability to realize you are not alone just might save your life one day."_

He turned, flitting around in a single breath. One form in the darkness met his eyes.

"You are still here? How peculiar," said a shadow, the only moving, breathing thing in Gotham that night other than himself. Silver glinted in the low light. He shied away from a blade, the blade, his eyes darting behind him. A sheer drop waited.

It was either the blade or the fall. His tormented mind struggled as the shadow neared.

He jumped.

Cold, hard air. That was it. That was the only thing that existed after he turned. He was reminded of something, something that helped to put the ever-growing fear in his heart and mind. He was not the first to end this way. He waited for the hit, the broken pain and the struggled breath, and it came, but not in the way he had expected. Of course, no one could predict what dying was like and neither could he.

He screamed. He screamed as loud as he could, voice full of impotent fury, tears running unchecked down his face. Around him the world was silent.

* * *

><p>"Master Richard?"<p>

Richard Grayson, sometimes called Dick, and known on the streets as Robin, opened his eyes, gasping as sleep left him.

"Is there something wrong, Master Richard?" came a pensive voice from behind the closed door of his room.

"No, Alfred," said Robin, his voice breaking. "Nothing wrong."

The door opened slowly and the aging man peered around. "Another dream?" he asked softly. Robin answered with a nod. "Shall I get you anything? Do you want to talk?"

The dark haired boy shook his head. Alfred Pennyworth, the butler, a kind man nearing God only knows what age, sat down beside Bruce Wayne's young ward. "It was them again," said the older man. It was a statement, not a question. He knew what the dreams were about.

"Always the same," Robin said, staring down at his hands. "Ever since..." He stopped. He didn't want to continue. He was rubbing salt in old wounds, and he knew better than to go there.

"How about something warm to drink. I'm sure that will cheer you up, Master Richard."

The teen answered with a quiet, "Okay."

"They aren't real. Just dreams," said Alfred, concern upon his thin face.

"I know."

But in both of their hearts, they knew it was something more than a recurring dream. But what exactly?

He was just trying to make the boy feel better. To Alfred, it was his duty to keep Master Bruce's ward happy, and it was almost what could be named as instinct that brought him to that particular wing to check on the young teen.

Something was not at all right, but there was little to be done at that hour. Alfred considered, briefly, finding Bruce, but couldn't. It was up to Master Richard. Hopefully, he would make his decision wise.


	2. Strange Beginnings

Richard Grayson pulled on his tie, twisting it up with an exasperated sigh. He hated being confined in those clothes. Heck, he hated being confined in school. It wasn't the academic side that bothered him, it was being cooped up with people who thought he was nothing more than a spoiled brat and treated him as such. This was why he was looking forward to his lunch break, when Alfred would pick him up and save him from the rest of his school day. Babs had already expressed her jealousy.

He smiled at the thought of her._ One of the only people who doesn't let society's expectations rule her opinions..._ Robin wondered for a moment if she would like the team. _She probably would_, he thought. _Wally would have a blast with her_.

Robin was standing in front of his locker, trying to decide if he would need his algebra textbook for class. He shrugged and pulled it out, about to put it in his backpack.

He sensed it rather than saw it, when a hardback cover of Twilight came flying in his direction. It took all of his self-control to pretend he didn't notice it until it hit him. He moved around it a bit to lessen the blow and make it look like it hit him, wondering if the only usefulness for the book had finally been discovered, as a ranged weapon.

"Hey, Dick. Thought you'd like some new reading material," came a familiar voice.

Robin rolled his eyes and looked over his shoulder.

Two teenage boys were moving closer. Robin tensed, knowing what followed the initial teasing. Another book came flying in his direction, and this time he dodged, albeit a bit sloppily. In one fluid motion he had the locker door closed and the book in his bag. He turned to leave and felt another book hit his back.

"Where do you think you're going? We're talking to you, Grayson," said the first boy again.

The other one laughed. "You too stupid to talk? I bet you pay the teachers to boost up your grades. No real brains, eh? Figures..."

"It's his 'dad's' fault. I bet Dicky boy doesn't even have to wipe his own ass." They both laughed. "You got people for that? Does that old butler of yours help you go potty, pretty boy?" The taller boy lapsed into baby talk, causing the other to laugh louder.

Robin kept his mouth closed, steaming silently. They were circling closer, like hungry wolves. He could see the angry glint in their eyes. He was doing everything he could to remain still and silent. Years of training kicked in and he fixed them with a quiet glare.

"Do you think that Bruce Wayne ever even talks to his little ward?" asked one of the boys, glancing at the other.

"Hardly... I doubt he even sees him."

"Well," said the first, "there won't be much to see when we're done with him."

* * *

><p>Maybe, just maybe, thought Robin as he slid into the back seat of Alfred's car, he could hold up the charade for another three years. And maybe, by that time he'll have grown enough to justify defending himself. At the moment, he was glad that Alfred had shown up early to the school. With the beating he had taken, Robin doubted he could focus for the next few classes, besides the fact that he looked -and felt- like hell. If Batman hadn't been so clear about 'keeping one's public identity', Robin would have risked it all today if it meant one less bruise.<p>

Alfred's thick accent sounded from the driver's seat. "I would ask that you refrain from bleeding too much on the upholstery, Master Richard, seeing as I only recently managed to get the blood stains out from your... previous encounters." The man glanced back and Robin caught a well-meant glimmer in the butler's eyes. "I take it you would like me to keep this between you and me?"

"Yes, please," Robin muttered. He wanted to stay away from Batman's reaction as long as possible, at least long enough to gather himself together, as Batman would invariably find out about the 'fight', or beating, as Robin wasn't allowed to even fight back. If anything, he thought, not fighting back added to chance of getting picked on, but there was no arguing with the Dark Knight, not if he knew what was good for him.

"Forgive me for asking, but was it the boys again?"

Robin sighed, leaning against the window. "Yes."

"Would you like me to have a look at your injuries when we reach the manor?"

"No," Robin said dully, eyes drifting to the surroundings. He sat up after a moment, frowning. "Where are we going? This isn't the way home."

"I figured you might like something sweet before we returned," said Alfred, looking back at the dark-haired boy through the rear view mirror. "Any ideas, Master Richard?"

Robin sat up a little taller, a smile curving on his lips. "Maybe."

* * *

><p>Twenty minutes later found Dick Grayson sitting, or rather, lounging in the back seat of the car, sipping on a large chocolate shake with an extra-large box of mozzarella sticks by his side. Despite the already forming bruises, the bloodied nose, and the ripped and stained clothes, Robin seemed perfectly content. Food from the little joint dubbed 'Ruby's' tended to put him in a peace of mind. He had, however, hardly finished his third mozzarella stick when the cleverly hidden computer on his watch alerted him of a message from Batman. Fearing the worst, he opened it up, sighing in relief when it was a call to Mount Justice. He could manage that.<p>

After changing clothes and saying a quick thanks and goodbye to Alfred, Robin took a zeta to the 'Cave', as Wally had so lovingly named it -despite the fact that Robin had told him on numerous occasions that the 'Cave' sounded too much like the 'Batcave', which was highly illogical. Wally had made some comment about 'stupid children' and ignored any attempt on Robin's part. It was tiring being the youngest.

His uniform left little of his skin exposed, which Robin was thankful for, and the only thing that showed was his amateur attempt at setting his broken nose and a rather nasty cut that lined his jaw. Despite his efforts to conceal it, someone was bound to notice his limp, and with Wally around he could only expect the bruising to worsen, as the redheaded speedster was very fond of pushing his young acrobatic friend around. It wasn't that odd for Robin to show up with a few extra injuries, considering the patrols on his city, but Batman would know he hadn't contracted them in Gotham.

The instant he stepped out into the main room of the team's headquarters, Robin was met with a blur of yellow and red and a quick jab to his side which left him gasping for breath. "'Sup bro... Oh, don't tell me you're going soft," Wally had already managed to say by the time Robin registered his companion. "That didn't hurt at all."

Robin only managed to send him a withering look, his mouth clamped shut, both out of pain and what words might slip from his mouth. Batman had a strict policy on cursing... Only when necessary... This time wouldn't count as necessary. Wally, despite his constantly childish state of mind, looked concerned. "What happened?"

"School," Robin grunted.

"Oh," Wally quickly replied, understanding dawning on his face. Other than Alfred, Wally was the only person who knew about Robin's school exploits. Well, Batman probably knew, but he was also probably of the state of mind that his ward could take care of himself. And while Alfred was a good listener, Wally was better on a personal level of understanding. Maybe it was the age difference... Alfred was more for advice while Wally tried to cheer him up. It was touching that they cared.

Robin winced as Artemis' loud voice echoed through the room. She was yelling at someone, and it couldn't be Wally. "What's she mad about today?" Robin asked.

Wally laughed. "I don't know... I think she was yelling at Conner last time I went through the living room. Something about the TV. I didn't walk through there again after that. Didn't want to get dragged into it." He shrugged. "She's been like that all week. Yell's at everything that moves... Or cries... She also cries. Unstable, that's what she is," Wally muttered as the two made their way towards the living quarters of the Cave. "She needs some serious help."

He kept talking after that, but Robin ignored him. Already he could feel the beginnings of a splitting headache. His recent lack of sleep and the previously sustained blows to the head weren't helping either, and Robin found himself absently rubbing his temples. As it turned out, Wally was right about the archer. Artemis had her hands on her hips, a snarl on her face, and was practically screaming at a very downtrodden looking Superboy. Conner Kent had his hands behind his back and for once didn't seem to be in any hurry to put up a fight. In fact, he looked close as he ever had to tears. Robin wondered just how long the blonde had kept him cornered.

The others had retreated to the kitchen, watching safely from behind the counter. Finally, Batman's familiar gruff voice sounded over the intercom. Saved by the bell, Robin thought as Superboy took his cue and ran off before Artemis could throw any more insults at him. The rest of the team were quick to follow and Robin glanced back at Artemis as she stood alone for a moment, staring down at her feet, before joining the group.

As they were accustomed, the team formed a line in front of the screen in the briefing room as Batman watched. When they were standing quietly, the Dark Knight began. As far as missions normally went, this one would be no different than any other. Another surveillance mission, another gig where the League was holding back the team of eager teens...

Apparently, during his recent work as a new member of the League, Red Arrow had uncovered a lead on the whereabouts of Project Cadmus' latest exploit; an assortment of experiments quite different from the usual. In his search for the real Roy Harper, Red had uncovered an underground genetics lab. Sure, they were still developing better technology for cloning under the radar, but this had S.T.A.R. Labs written all over it.

"Upon further investigation, I found the connection," Batman said, changing the screen. A young, dark skinned woman appeared. "A geneticist from the branch of S.T.A.R. Labs in Austin, Texas, recently 'let go' in response to her impersonal take on live test subjects, was last seen briefly in security footage in the Los Angeles facility for genetics. She somehow made it out of both facilities with a considerable amount of information, both in her field of study and in others." The screen changed again, this time running the security footage. "As far as we know, she is the one supplying Cadmus with information, and for a brief time before her bank account and her license were suspended, she was able to purchase much of the machinery used in this new project.

"As it is, Cadmus has taken a new turn in their previous line of work. From what we can gather, they're working on bio-engineering rather than cloning at the moment. Considering the delicacy of the subjects and the machinery, you will not be confronting them under any circumstances." As if he had not made himself clear enough, his eyes followed the teenagers. "Do you understand?"

There were mutters of "yes sir" and nods. Kaldur politely raised his hand and Batman looked quizzically in his direction at the end. "What about Rocket? Will she be joining us?"

"No," said Batman, finality in his words. "She will not. She has... other duties. The people you see here now," he gestured at the team, "are the people who will conduct the mission."

Robin looked down the line, noting with sadness the absence of Zatanna. It was no secret where she was. Zatanna was still in the hospital from their last mission, barely conscious and hardly ready to return. _And she is there_, Robin thought sourly, _because of us, because of our inability to work together that has almost cost us many missions_. More than he wanted to count. Although Artemis and Wally were finally dating, and thankfully over their mutual hatred, they bantered and fought just as much as they had before. Then there was Superboy, who maintained his hardened demeanor and general anger towards the world despite the best efforts of Megan. Poor Megan… She wanted nothing more than to see the team succeed. She tried to resolve issues and take the blame for everyone, and the weight of it all had pushed her down. While on the outside she remained positive as ever, on the inside Robin wondered if she was really as okay as she pretended to be. Kaldur was suffering as well, with the weight of leadership on his shoulders and the recent discovery of his father's true identity…

The ragtag team of teenage superheroes barely managed to keep up with the missions, what with their other lives pressing in on them. Robin felt he was no exception. The nightmares and the constant bullying were beginning to reflect upon his alter ego, and Dick Grayson and Robin were becoming one and the same as his life seemed to be spiraling ever downward. He wanted to fight back, to prove he wasn't weak… He wanted to be able to go to sleep without fear quaking through his bones and without waking up with his clothes plastered to his body from sweat.

Robin didn't feel sorry for himself, though. In his mind, there were people with far worse things in their lives than him and he was thankful for what he had and the people he had grown to know and love.

It's just… something strange was happening. What he had first put off as the product of a lack of sleep, he now worried about quietly as Batman dismissed the group and the team broke off to get ready. They were leaving the next day. Robin's vision was a bit cloudy, like if he was still in a dream, and the nausea he had partnered with the slight beating he had taken earlier seemed to be getting worse, a knife slowly twisting its way into his brain. As he neared the doorframe to the living room, he stumbled, blacking out for a moment before the reassuring grip of his best friend kept him from hitting the ground. Still holding his arm, Wally ushered him quickly through the room and towards Robin's occasionally used bedroom.

"I'm fine," Robin said, trying to pull away. "Let go."

"No," Wally said. "I know you're trying not to look bad in front of the rest of the team. I'm just trying to look out for you."

"But I'm fine," Robin hissed through his teeth as they passed Megan and Conner in the hall. He and Wally gave quick and almost painfully fake smiles in their direction before they turned the corner. At once Robin looked completely serious again, if not a bit angry.

"Look, I've known you almost as long as I've had my powers and I know when you're having a bad time," the redhead said, finally reaching the door to Robin's room. With his free hand he opened the door and turned on the light. With that he propelled the younger boy into the room and towards the bed. "I know you don't like other people knowing when you're down, so go get some rest and I'll cover your back. Bros, right?" He offered a fist.

Robin stared at him for a moment before a small smile spread across his face. "Yeah, bros." He met Wally's fist. "Thanks."

"No need to thank me. It's what we're supposed to do." The speedster said, moving towards the door. "But," he said, grinning, "You're going to pay for it later." He disappeared out of the room and shut the door before Robin could respond.

Robin sighed and turned towards his bed, glancing only once at the door before he climbed under the covers, not bothering to pull off his costume or even his mask.

* * *

><p>He was sitting on one of the picnic tables in the courtyard of Gotham Academy, hands folded over the table, just brushing against a lunch bag. He was waiting for everyone to come out to lunch. He pulled at his tie, loosening it before letting his hands fell back to the table. He sat this way, fidgeting every once in a while, for quite some time before it dawned on him that something was wrong. In fact, it wasn't until he got up to glance in one of the classroom windows for the time –he had forgotten his watch- that he realized that there was something terribly amiss about Gotham Academy on that day.<p>

Dick Grayson knew for a fact that there was supposed to be a class in that room, but doubting his premonitions, he walked into the school and began checking classrooms. All down the hall, his search yielded negative results until a few classrooms away from the end of that hall, he turned away to go back to his starting point, hoping that his search was just a figment of his over-active imagination. Before he moved, however, a sound caught his ears, and having patrolled the streets of Gotham for years, he recognized it immediately. A feminine scream cut through the silence and he spun on his heels and sprinted down the hall to one of the last rooms.

Throwing away anything he knew about stealth, he burst into the room to find his best, and only, friend from Gotham Academy, Barbara Gordon, tied to a chair, looking at him fearfully from across the room. She shook her head and whimpered as he got closer. For a second, he was confused. _That's right_, he thought. _She doesn't know that I'm Robin. She probably thinks I can't help her._ "Babs, it's okay… I'm here."

She shook her head again, tears streaming down her face, still with fear in her eyes. "Babs?" he chirped, before realizing that she was not, in fact, looking at him, but past him. He turned, terror clutching at his chest, and came eye to eye that the only man that could ever put fear into the Batman. The Joker stood there, a terrible grin on his face, a blade in his hand, mad laughter bubbling from his throat. "Why so serious, little bird?"

Robin shut his eyes, squeezed them tight and wished to never open them again, and when he finally opened them again, the room was empty. He glanced back at where Barbara had been, only to find the chair empty and any evidence of either the girl or the Joker gone. He stepped forward to get a better look around the room and suddenly he had the dizzying feeling of falling. When the world finally stopped spinning and his vision cleared, he was the one strapped to a chair and the room had morphed into something darker.

"You'll never leave my city," a voice echoed from the shadows. "There's nowhere to fly to, no one to save you, nothing you can do… I want to see what you do, Robin, as I pluck your feathers one-by-one."

* * *

><p>Dick Grayson woke up, gasping for breath and tangled in blankets, on the floor of his bedroom. He struggled to turn over and look up at the clock on his bedside table. Three hours. He had been asleep for three hours. It had seemed like longer, like he had been floating in that agonizing plane of existence for ages. Every time it was slightly different, but it always ended the same. When he finally found the energy to stand up, Robin's world spun and he almost fell again. His vision had that dreamlike quality again and he almost felt worse than before.<p>

Robin stumbled over to the mirror on one of the walls. He had to admit, even through the hazy fog that he felt was covering his vision, he could tell he looked pretty haggard. He peeled off his mask and leaned closer to the mirror, tracing the circles under his eyes. He pressed his lips together and turned away, tossing his mask onto his bed before sitting next to it and covering his face.

It was about seven in the evening, not even late enough for him to really sneak out, or to give up on the night. Robin figured he would have to just deal with the rest of the team. Wally could only cover him for so long before the others got suspicious and the mozzarella sticks from earlier had worn off. He was starving, as well as tired, and there was only one thing that he really had any control over.

By the time he had changed into comfortable clothes and slipped on a pair of sunglasses, it had been thirty minutes and Robin's headache had cleared up a little bit. He walked down the hall and peeked into the living room. Wally must have pulled a lot of strings to get everyone into there and quietly watching a movie. Robin squinted at the screen. They were watching Harry Potter, of all things, a series that Artemis was very vocal about hating. But there she was, curled up next to Wally on one of the couches, looking happier than usual. Robin snorted and moved quietly behind them and into the kitchen.

Megan was there, holding two bags of popcorn and attempting to pick up the drinks for everyone. Robin smiled and stopped her before she could spill anything. "They leave you hanging?" the raven haired teen asked. His voice was a little huskier than usual, sleep still clinging to him. "I'll carry the drinks. You just take yours."

"Thanks Robin," she said, sounding grateful. As Robin figured out a way to carry four drinks without spilling them, Megan took that as a chance to ask something that had been on her mind since he had arrived earlier in the day. "Are you okay? Did something happen earlier today?" Robin was silent, finally deciding to carry two in each hand. "Robin?"

"I'm fine, just ended up on the wrong side of a few punches," he said, hoping to avoid any more questions by walking towards the door.

"A few punches?" she asked, blocking his way. Robin swallowed a growl. "Weren't you at school?"

He didn't want to answer that question. He knew if he said yes, he'd have to answer more questions, but the genuine concern that Megan was expressing made him reluctant to lie. "Yes." She looked surprised, and then the motherly expression spread across her face. Before she could say anything, Robin continued. "Look, I'm not the most 'popular' person at my school, and I'm young for the grade that I'm in. People pick on me sometimes. It's nothing, okay?"

Megan shook her head. "It's not okay! Why don't you talk to someone?"

Robin felt his patience wearing thin. "Who am I supposed to talk to?"

"A teacher… Batman… Your parents? You don't need to suffer alone and you don't need to let people take advantage of you," she said. Unknowingly, Megan had hit a tough subject. At the mention of his parents, Robin's mood swung even lower. He tried to push past Megan. "Robin, listen to me!"

"I've tried talking to my teachers, but they can't do anything. I've talked to Batman, but he told me not to fight back," he hesitated before moving on to the last part, thinking briefly that he was being a bit harsh to the well-meaning Martian. "And I can't talk to parents."

"Why?" she asked, noticing his tone.

"Because my parents are dead," Robin said forcefully before shoving past Megan and into the living room. He didn't glance back, feeling an unusual emotion bubbling up inside. He was angry; angry and tired and impartial. When he reached the table he slammed down the drinks and left before anyone could catch him. He needed to get some air.

* * *

><p>Robin always enjoyed Happy Harbor. There was something about the quiet seaside town that calmed him down, even when he was feeling the way he felt then.<p>

He walked quietly down the street, passing friendly faces and familiar storefronts. He continued walking until he reached the strand, where the only thing separating the shops and houses from the docks and the foamy sea was a thin street that hardly ever felt more than foot traffic. Towards the end of this street was the small café that Robin always went to when he was feeling down or needed a break from the world, which lately happened much more often than before.

It was called 'Paris', and it had a little deck in front if customers wanted to sit outside. The owner had grown to know Robin well, and looked up with a smile as the boy walked in. "Richard," he said. "A pleasure seeing you." Robin nodded in response, the curling up the side of his mouth into a little smile. "The usual?" Again, Robin nodded and sat down on one of the barstools near the counter, fishing through his pockets for a ten dollar bill. He pulled one out and pushed it towards the café owner.

"Keep the change," he said softly.

"Thank you," said the man, a grin forming beneath his bushy grey mustache. "It'll be just a moment."

As the old man moved around his kitchen, Robin rested his head on his arms and looked out the window, watching as a fishing boat pulled in. He shifted his gaze to a little girl feeding the seagulls as a woman, Robin guessed her mother, stood a little ways away. A sad smile touched Robin's face. Would he have done that sort of thing if his parents had been around? He realized that he could hardly remember his parents' faces, not off the top of his head. He focused on calling up an image of them.

"Here you go," the kind voice of the café owner brought him out of his memories. He sat up.

"Thank you," he said, picking up a large cup of hot chocolate and a bag with a couple of freshly baked, and still warm, cookie on the inside. Batman didn't really approve of 'sweets', so Robin snuck them whenever he got the chance. He didn't go overboard like Wally, but he did enjoy a bit of sugar every once in a while. He walked outside and took the table at one of the corners of the deck. For a while he just sat there, sipping his hot chocolate. It was some time before he realized just how cold the sea breeze was, especially since he was only wearing a t-shirt and jeans and hadn't put on any socks when he slipped on his shoes.

He didn't notice the redhead until the teenager had plopped down in the chair beside him. "Hey," Wally said. Robin didn't look up, instead passing a cookie in the general direction of his friend. "Thanks bro."

"Mhmm."

"You okay?"

"Yep, just dandy," Robin muttered. "You finally get tired of them?"

Wally shook his head. "Whatever you said to Megan upset her. She went off and cried." He crossed his arms and leaned back in the chair. "I know she cries at just about anything, but she shut herself up in her room and wouldn't even let Conner in."

"I didn't say anything," Robin said, but he still felt bad. He had been a little rude.

The speedster ignored Robin's last comment. "The others were pretty confused when you stormed out."

"I needed a break."

"You're making it hard for me to cover for you when you mess around like that."

Robin sighed. "She brought up my parents, Wally. She was getting into my business and I don't know what happened. I just sort of… snapped." He shook his head, feeling tears well up in his eyes. He didn't want to cry, not in front of Wally, not in front of anyone. Alfred was the only one… He didn't like to look weak or lose control of his composure, but he couldn't stop and instead looked down at his bag. "I don't know what's wrong with me." He felt a reassuring hand on his shoulder and looked up into Wally's face. The older boy had gotten rid of his joking smile for once and was looking very seriously at Robin. "I can't do anything… I can't… can't…" His voice broke. "It's like every bad thing that's ever happened is coming back to haunt me."

"I'm sorry," Wally said. "I really am. If I could do something I would… Just try not to take it out on the others, m'kay? If you need to vent at someone, use me. I at least know why you're feeling bad. They don't understand."

All was quiet for a moment, both boys looking out over the harbor, before Robin looked over at Wally, the faintest traces of a smile on his face. "When did you become so good at being serious? That's Kaldur's job."

Wally laughed. "I dunno… If you want, though, I could make a few jokes… Maybe make a certain blonde archer's life miserable." He paused with a thoughtful expression. "I'm going to have to rebuild my rep before anyone starts thinking I've changed." He jumped up, a silly grin plastered on his face. "They probably think something's wrong with the both of us!" He pulled on Robin's arm, the smaller boy barely righting his hot chocolate before it spilled and he was pulled up. "Back to the Cave with you, little bro! I've got to go mess some things up and I need a partner in crime."

Robin barely managed to wave goodbye to the café owner before he was propelled down the walkway by a jabbering redhead. The streetlights flickered into existence as they neared the edge of town and darkness overtook Happy Harbor.


	3. True To His Nature

**A/N: Hey guys, still alive and going. Sorry for the looooong waiting period between chapters... I have no plot. At all. I'm trying something new with this one. Whenever I write plots, I live through the story in my mind and by the time I write the actual story, I've already been through it enough that I lose interest. This should keep it fresh. I love reviews! I do, really! They keep me going. So, tell me if I got OOC or the story doesn't make any sense. I like criticism too. **

**Rated T for safety. Later we might get a bit touchy.**

**Disclaimer: Ah, the dreaded disclaimer... If I owned Young Justice (which I do not... sadly), the time jump would not have been until season 3 and the entire plot would have taken a darker twist.**

* * *

><p>Chapter 2 - True to My Nature<p>

The next morning the call to the mission room came early, before the sun had risen, and the young heroes slowly made their way into the room wearing their respective uniforms. Robin, despite his lingering headache and darkening bruises, was the first to arrive, followed closely by Superboy. They stood in companionable silence.

Luckily for Robin, Superboy had accepted his apology to M'gann and the team the night before, understanding that he never really meant any harm against the Martian girl and that his temper was just a bit shorter that evening. Superboy fully understood. The only part that bothered Robin was the caution that most of the team was exercising about the subject of families. Honestly, they'd spoke about those kinds of things before and he hadn't really given much thought about it. What made now any different? He wasn't sure if he had entirely forgiven M'gann for getting on his case.

It was so unlike him, holding grudges, and he successfully ignored his hard feelings and wiped the thoughts from his mind as M'gann entered the room, followed closely by Wolf. Personal issues didn't need to interfere with business.

"Good morning, Megan," Robin said, sending her an award winning smile.

She looked surprised at his lack of animosity, but she sent him a cheerful smile back. "Good morning, Robin." M'gann waved at Conner. Robin averted his eyes, feeling a bit awkward as M'gann and Conner kissed. He knew from the beginning that they would get together, but he didn't really know what he was supposed to do now. He jumped at the opportunity to move away from them when Artemis trudged into the room. He ran over to her, ignoring the slight pain in his side, sending her a grin that rivaled that of the Cheshire cat. "Hullo Artemis," he chirped. She rolled her eyes. They'd been on good terms since the life-or-death situation in the cave a while back. A team building experience, Batman had called it. Ha.

Artemis, although presentable in her uniform, looked as if she'd just rolled out of bed. Her hair was just a bit messy and, from the slight smudging around her eyes, she was still wearing the same makeup from the day before. From what Robin had observed, Artemis had no sense of time and probably spent the whole night watching movies or surfing the web (he would have to check later which one she was doing, just to satisfy his curiosity). Artemis shot the happy couple a grimace and turned to Robin, apparently deciding he was better company.

"Jealous?" Robin asked.

"Shut up," she said, but she was smiling.

"I thought you and Wally got together."

Artemis scowled. "He's an ass."

"True... but he can't be all that bad," Robin said, laughing.

"He is."

"And yet," Robin said, preparing to run, "you still tolerate him. One might even go as far as to say you love him."

Artemis aimed a well-natured punch at the Boy Wonder and he dodged. The archer wasn't mad because Robin was true, she did love Wally, just not some aspects of his personality. Despite being thirteen, Robin had given both Artemis and Wally some useful dating advice, hoping they'd eventually get over their awkward beginnings.

"Speaking of that little turd, where is he?" Artemis said, crossing her arms and throwing a sideways glance at the doorway.

"For a speedster," said a new, deeper voice, "he is awfully slow." Artemis jumped and Robin merely turned on his heels. Kaldur nodded in their direction as he walked in from another room. "He went back to his home last night because he wanted to check on his mother and decided to stay the night."

"Is his mom feeling better?" Artemis asked. Feeling better? Robin frowned. He hadn't heard anything about Wally's mom lately. Or had he forgotten it already?

Megan joined the conversation. "What happened to his mom?"

Artemis hesitated, unsure whether she should say anything and Kaldur picked up for her. "She has been ill lately, but both Wally and the Flash have assured me that she is fine and that Wally should continue on the mission as usual." There were nods all around and the team descended into a quiet calm as they waited for their teammate.

"Recognized Kid Flash B-03."

"That'll be him," Robin said quietly, and without waiting for the speedster to reach them, the team began moving toward the hangar and the bioship.

* * *

><p>"And that's why I don't like zombies," Wally said, and Robin looked up, blinking the interior of the bioship into focus. He hadn't been paying any attention to the speedster for the past twenty minutes, nodding and making a noise every once in a while to fuel the talkative teen on.<p>

"Oh... Uh, okay," Robin muttered, absentmindedly picking at the 'R' insignia on his chest. The slight cheerful mood he had earlier had deflated and he was left with an empty feeling in his chest. He had wanted to go over mission notes or perhaps work on a few back-up plans since the team was prone to mistakes, but his mind was such a muddled mess that he was content enough to sit in silence and let the darkness swirl around in his brain. He wondered how Batman did it, running on empty almost all of the time and still keeping a level of productivity and cognitive function that rivaled most others. Robin was having enough trouble keeping focus on the brightly clad speedster's rambling.

He shook his head and glanced out the window of the bioship. They were on their way to a remote part of Washington, to a previously abandoned government facility - a reserve for national security - that had not been in use since the late 1940's. It was severely outdated, but Batman had a hunch.

In his investigations of S.T.A.R. Labs and the possible corporations and genetic labs advanced enough and protected well enough by the government to allow an underground lab to pass underneath the eyes of higher authority, he had come across some gaps, a trickle of files becoming lost. Most of these records were trivial, but he noticed a pattern. He pulled a few strings as Bruce Wayne to get a hold of hard copies of anything that wasn't there.

Many of these copies were destroyed, but through the ones he did get, he discovered a chain of shut-down or less active military bases and facilities. Although Kane Point, the team's destination in Washington, certainly wasn't the only suspicious disappearance, the most work was put into it to make it 'vanish' off the map.

Robin sighed and glanced at Miss Martian, piloting the ship with an unreadable expression on her face. He wanted to put his trust in Batman's research, but even this seemed a little off-key. Besides, the villains they usually faced were the criminally insane... They were a bit more obvious, and a little less careful. That being said, the Justice League would never have known about Cadmus and their cloning projects had the building not been stumbled upon by accident.

"Miss Martian," Kaldur said, breaking the silence. Even Kid Flash had quieted down. "What is our ETA?"

"Ten minutes," she said, glancing back at the Atlantean.

Kaldur nodded. "We need to be ready to go then. Miss Martian and Wally need their stealth suits on." Wally nodded and tapped his chest, changing the color of his suit, and one could see the black costume flow into existence on Megan. "We will be carrying out the original plan for now and if, or when, a problem arises, we will fall back and regroup. Robin, anything to add?"

"Remember what Batman said," Robin spoke finally. "Don't engage... the most you need to do is take up a good defense and then get the heck out of there."

Artemis tugged at her hair and frowned. "You keep talking as if we're going to get caught..."

* * *

><p>Compared to other operations, the plan to infiltrate Kane Point was relatively easy. There were multiple blind spots, and with a team trained in stealth, this gave them many openings to work from. They split into three 'teams', two of which would work on getting in. Robin and Artemis split off to take the east corner, the closest one where the bioship was landed, and Miss Martian took the west. Superboy, Wolf, Aqualad, and Kid Flash waited at the bioship for a signal from either of the leading teams. When they had a chance, they would go in to investigate and Superboy and Wolf would patrol their exits to make sure they weren't noticed or caught. Simple, easy, to the point. What could go wrong? Robin had a long list of things that could go wrong, but he kept them to himself.<p>

Robin shivered slightly, the hair on his arms standing on end as he waited on the roof. It was silent, silent enough that he could hear Artemis' quiet breathing behind him. He had one hand out in front of her to keep her from moving before he was ready.

The Boy Wonder let his eyes scan the empty courtyard, never focusing, just skimming for movement. It was easier to spot things that way. "What are we waiting for?" Artemis whispered and Robin ignored her.

Finally he caught it, a slight flash of skin in the morning light. Kane Point wasn't as empty as he had thought. "There," he said, pulling his arm from in front of Artemis to point.

She scooted up next him. "Where?" It was a moment before understanding dawned on her face. "Oh."

Robin moved back down to his stomach and inched toward the corner of the building.

"What are you doing now?" Artemis asked.

"Watch for patterns in his movements... He might be a guard, or he might just be moving around the facility," Robin replied before getting to the other wall. "If he looks up, don't move, just-"

"Pretend like I don't exist and that he didn't see me. Got it." She squinted over at her younger companion in the weak morning light. "This isn't my first rodeo."

"Let's hope it isn't your last."

"I honestly doubt we'll have any trouble here."

Robin shrugged, tilting his head back to look at Artemis. "Same here, but remember last time?" He was answered by slow nod. "Let's try not to repeat that." And with that, he shut any thoughts of continuing the conversation out of his mind. He needed no distractions. He pushed himself up to his elbows; face above the parapet just enough to see the ground below. This time it didn't take him long to find what he was looking for.

A smaller, but more obvious, man walked slowly around the bend of a walkway. He stopped at each doorway and each walkway, glancing wildly about, and fidgeted at every sound. He must be new, thought Robin. He smiled. New meant bold and attentive, but also meant inexperienced and clumsy at best. The boy lowered himself back down before attempting to gain Artemis' attention. The blonde turned his way, a questioning expression on her face.

"I found an opening, unless your way is better."

Artemis nodded before glancing back at her side. "He's slow. He stops a lot and then just sits there, but I can tell he's moving in a circular motion around his part of the complex. What about yours?"

"New guy, lots of spunk and very attentive. He'll notice first if anything is amiss."

Artemis huffed. "I don't see how that's any better... Are we supposed to sneak past him? Because Superboy isn't very good at being inconspicuous."

"But, the guy on my side is new. We'd be knocking him out and tying him up somewhere. He probably won't be missed, and if his side is down, we'll have a wide opening and room for error," said Robin.

"So we just take this guy out? What about my guy?" She wasn't buying his plan.

"He's not as attentive right? He either won't notice or won't care that his colleague is gone."

Artemis nodded. "Do you want to take him?"

"Actually, I have a plan that might involve the both of us."

* * *

><p>By the time Artemis put her part of the plan into action, Robin was already dangling precariously over the edge of the building. She would be going on and figuring out which building would be best to enter and Robin was in charge of taking out the younger guard. The older one, he would distract.<p>

Robin kicked his legs forward and pushed off with his arms, snatching a quick glance to his right to make sure the guard was still examining one of the passageways off the main corridor. He twisted his body midair, slowing down his fall by scraping his boots along the wall before landing in a crouch. Another glance told him that he hadn't been heard. He lowered his body until his stomach almost touched the ground and willed himself to become part of the shadows. The yellow undersides of his cape and parts capable of reflection were hidden.

Not a moment too soon. The guard turned quickly, his face whitened by the last light of the moon, eyes darting over the courtyard. He moved forward, eyes focused on a shadow next to Robin. The Boy Wonder resisted turning to see what the guard was looking at. Closer... Closer... Any closer and Robin was worried he would need to break character and silence the man before he could make any more observations. A shuffling noise from across the way was Robin's saving grace, as the guard whirled about to face the other direction, gun sliding out of his holster and held shakily in front of him.

"Relax, it's only me," spoke a deep voice. Robin moved slightly to see who it belonged to. He was slightly shocked to see that his earlier assumptions about the other guard were entirely wrong. The man was easily twice the size of Superboy, something the teens hadn't noticed from their vantage point. The guard was burly and wide and covered with hair, and if it weren't for his modern-day uniform, he could have passed for a Viking. His bald head reflected the light, and spidery veins worked their way down his face until they disappeared into a monstrous beard that reached mid-chest. Robin found it hard to point out any positive aspects of the man, as he reminded Robin of a strange mixture of Killer Croc and Bane, with a few other things thrown in. Apparently, from the still uneasy look on the younger man's face, that guard had problems finding the giant anything but frightening either. "How're you doing on your first night, Daniel?"

The small one, Daniel blinked in surprise before his face settled into a scowl. "Fine, no thanks to you. And who's watching your circle while you're gone?" Robin raised his brows, the guy was either brave or stupid... or both.

The giant grinned, exposing a filthy line of teeth. "We're in the middle of nowhere... Nobody's coming."

"Oh, so why do they need us then, huh?" Daniel asked, leaning forward onto the balls of his feet.

"The higher-ups are overcautious. Honestly, who cares? We get paid; we get a place to live... You should be happy that they gave you your life." The giant looked content, his eyes glazing over. "One day, you will come to know the truth behind why you were spared, and you will finally know peace." Daniel didn't look entirely convinced, but he didn't speak. Robin, however, edged forward to observe the men, throwing caution to the wind as he thought he saw something. Giving life and finally knowing peace? This ordeal was beginning to greatly resemble a cult - far away from other people, mindless devotion, and the attempt to delete Kane Point from knowledge...

A numb feeling spread from his chest. He'd dealt with cults before, and he couldn't say he liked them, but the strange veins and the dazed look on the giant man's face called forth a half-forgotten memory, something he had seen in his dreams. He was frightened and, upon remembering the events in the dream, repulsed, but he felt drawn towards the guards. Robin almost moved from his hiding place.

A hand on his shoulder stopped him, and he hardly dared turn to see who held him in place. "Robin, we need to go while they're still talking... I found a way in and, well..." It was Artemis, and Robin let out a slow breath before turning to look at her. "I don't mean it in a bad way, but there's no way the two of us can take on that," she gestured at the giant man, "beast." Robin nodded slowly. "I've already contacted Miss Martian. She'll get the others and she'll go ahead and act as a distraction while we're inside."

"Okay," Robin said quietly.

Artemis gently pulled him back into to the relative safety of one of the side corridors. "Are you okay?"

Robin met her eyes then looked down, nodding slowly. "Yeah, yeah... I'm fine."

"Do you know these guys?"

"No."

"You know, if you want to stay behind-"

"No. I'm fine."

Artemis led him through a twisting pathway, a sort of alley between the buildings. She said that, while they had all agreed it was possible to get to the underground tunnel system through any of the buildings, one of them would put them right above where they needed to be. She had given Kaldur the coordinates and they would meet there. As the guards posted had been in the outer rim of buildings, moving to theirs was easier, as there were no people along the way. The quiet walk to the next building gave Robin time to think.

He needed to organize his thoughts and come up with priorities. First, Kane Point. Who knew how long it had been inhabited since the closure after World War II? They would need to be prepared for a well-organized operation with technological advances beyond what was capable years ago, however a small part of him hoped that Cadmus only placed their association with Kane Point fairly recently. Robin would need to immediately map out tunnels and hack security when they reached the tunnels, which were far enough below at this point that his wrist computer was unable to pick up a reliable signal. That would be priority one.

Two? Robin frowned. Unless the rooms were identifiable by computer, they would need to track down stolen information and machinery by hand - rather than using his computer - and that would push them on time. Too much time spent searching, and they would either risk getting caught themselves, Megan might not be able to keep up a plausible distraction with the guards, or the bioship might be discovered. He wished that Zatanna was there... She could hide the ship, keep the guards busy, and still participate in the infiltration. He had long ago decided she was an asset.

Would they need to split up? Robin could work faster alone, but Kaldur was leader and he had an obvious aversion to spreading the lines too thin. He rubbed his arm and let out a sigh. Today was not a good day for thinking...

"Are you sure you're okay?" Artemis asked, breaking Robin out of his thoughts.

Robin smirked. "I'm planning, if that's okay with you... We can't go in without a plan."

Artemis rolled her eyes, but nodded all the same. "I thought you and Kaldur already went over a plan? Are you changing it already?"

"Well, what if the original plan fails?"

"We have a back-up."

"But will it be sufficient?" Robin asked, more to himself than as an answer to Artemis' question.

"You bats are all the same," Artemis muttered. Robin shrugged, then winced when pain shot through his shoulder. He hid a groan as he suddenly remembered all of the different aged bruises and pulled muscles on his body. Hopefully they would get through this mission without needing to pull out and fight - he wasn't sure he could take very many hits, especially if there were any more like the giant man from before. He hadn't even fought the guy, but he felt drained regardless. No need to get caught up in a super-powered grudge match... He'd let Superboy duke it out with the big guys. But, he reminded himself, only if needed. Gosh, he thought, we went into this mission with a negative mentality, didn't we?

When they reached the next building, a shimmer next to the wall told them that Miss Martian was already there. When approached, she faded back into existence. She was paler than usual, slightly frowning with her arms crossed subconsciously over her stomach as if she were hugging herself. She was nervous. "I'm about to go cause the distraction... Is there anything else I can do before I go?"

Robin shook his head before Artemis could say anything. "Just keep to the new plan, make sure not to get seen, and try not to make your distractions too suspicious. The younger, smaller guard is jumpier... so try to keep them together and just a little creeped out."

"Okay," Miss Martian said softly, still looking a little stressed.

"Don't worry," he said. "We'll be twenty minutes at most... You can even try those new telepathic technics you were telling us about."

"The ones where I lull them to sleep?"

"Those should do... It's normal for people to nod off every once in a while." Robin smiled for Megan's benefit. "It should help with the believability."

Miss Martian was gone for a full five minutes before the rest of the team showed up at the rendezvous point. When Artemis asked why it took that long, Superboy merely shook his head and Kid Flash mentioned that the big guard was hard to move. Kaldur made sure everyone had the same plan in mind and Robin elaborated on individual roles in the infiltration. Superboy and Kaldur were the heavy lifters, they would carry or wreak the machinery recovered, depending on the situation and the time limits. Kid Flash and Robin would work on cracking as security and gathering information, with the majority of the load on Robin. Artemis and Wolf (Artemis looked affronted when she found out who her partner was) would act as back-up for either team should they need any help. Megan, well, she knew her knew part and was already busy enacting it.

Finding the tunnel system was easy enough. The layout of the buildings hadn't changed since Kane Point's days as an active base and there were no alarm systems to trip on the way inside the building. In fact, if he had been thinking straight, it might have occurred to Robin that everything was a little too easy; the thinly dispersed guards, effortless navigation, all down to the security and the computers. It took maybe 30 seconds for Robin to put the entire system under his control.

They moved below ground quickly, encouraged by the relative smoothness of the mission thus far. Robin hadn't the slightest worry about splitting up. He had his head in the game, he was focused, and the pain in his limbs and the fatigue from his recent lack of sleep left, leaving him with a rush of energy. Robin could have rivaled Kid Flash's energy for a moment, balancing over the balls of his feet and snaking through the dimly lit hallways. The two had been practicing working together, and Robin almost felt as comfortable with Kid Flash at his side as he did Batman. Though, Batman certainly had the stealth part down better... Wally was trying, and doing fairly well.

The shadows were their allies. After a few twists down the hallway, the two left the rest of the group in an intersection and went off on their own. The farther they went, the colder it became, and soon both were shivering despite themselves. Again, Robin had unknowing shut down the constantly suspicious side of his brain, and failed to register the dimming lights and the freezing air. It was cold in Washington, but not that cold. By the time they reached their destination, their breath was coming out in steamy puffs of air. Robin went into the room first, taking his time in observing all details.

It was just as cold as the tunneling, and bare of furnishings save for a desk and a chair pushed against one wall. Wires crossed the floor in all directions like a great spider web, coming from multiple outlets across the room and leaving through others. A large majority of the wires connected to one wall, a wall made up of various screens and outlets and control panels. The constant flashing of hundreds of tiny lights and the low buzzing noise that accompanied the computers almost made Robin dizzy, but he pushed back the feeling. There was not a soul in sight. There hadn't been for some time... In fact, they hadn't seen anyone since they had first gone to enter the tunnels save for a mousy man that quickly made his way out of range before he could pose any danger.

With everything mapped out in his memory, he turned to gesture for Kid Flash. The speedster was by his side in a second, stirring up dust and blinking in the brighter artificial light. He stood there for a moment, and Robin watched him, eager for input. Kid Flash shook his head. In a voice barely above a whisper he said, "It's weird, isn't it? Nobody around, a bunch of unmanned machines... And it's freezing in here!" He rubbed his arm. "I didn't even bring a jacket..."

"I know, I know... Just," Robin started moving towards the edge of the room, "try to figure out which room Superboy and Aqualad went into and work on cutting power."

Wally responded almost immediately, standing in front of the computers by the time Robin was finished talking. "And what about you?"

Robin paused mid-step. What was he doing? He supposed he could figure out how many people there were at Kane's Point, and where they would be if he could. "I'll figure out where all the action is." He came alongside the speedster.

Wally smiled. "Asterous."

"That's _my_ word," Robin said, feigning a pout.

Kid Flash stepped back, smiling at his handiwork. "Alright, I think I've got the right power grid... You want to check?"

Robin nodded. "Yeah, hold on," he said, leaning over. He took a step towards Kid Flash and his portion of the wall and his foot scrapped on something metal. As he put pressure on his foot, there was a small metallic click and suddenly all of the lights went out. A rush of freezing wind swooped through the room and before either of the boys knew what was going on, the door to the hallway closed and they were stuck in the dark.

For a moment nothing happened, just silence and darkness, but then Robin became aware of faint panting behind him. "Kid?"

"H-here," a shaky voice answered.

"Are you okay? Did something happen?"

"Robin, have I ever told you that I'm... well, terrified of cold and dark places." Kid Flash's voice sounded near to breaking. "I just can't-" His voice was getting closer, moving towards where he last heard Robin's voice. "I can't breathe. Rob, you're still there... right?" He was beginning to sound frantic.

"KF, hey, it's fine. Just a power trip, okay? I'm working on it," Robin said. He felt something brush past his arm and he reached out, wrapping his hand around what he soon found to be Wally's wrist. "Stay next to me, okay? You'll be fine." Wally moved closer to him and Robin pulled his hand off the speedster's wrist. When they lost contact, Wally jumped and Robin was quick to reassure him that he was still there and that he just needed to get to his computer.

As Robin fumbled for his wrist computer, which was still attached to one of the wall outlets, he let his thoughts wonder. He realized that in all the time he'd known Wally, they'd never once been stuck in a situation where it was pitch black and they were trapped in some underground room. It had never occurred to him that Wally might have a phobia such as this, especially since the teen liked to keep up the image of fearlessness and courage. He hoped the power outage wasn't due to an electromagnetic pulse as it had before in the cave, because then his wrist computer would be useless.

It switched on slowly, the light faint, and emitted noises of static. The light, however, was enough to see Wally's pale form to his right. "Kid Flash?" Wally's eyes snapped open and Robin could see him relax a little bit. "We're fine, man," Robin said. "We're gonna be fine." But he wasn't sure. The screen was blank on his wrist computer and it was almost as if someone had erased everything on it.

He sighed and reached out telepathically. "_Guys, we're trapped in one of the rooms. Any chance you can send someone out to-"_

And then, out of nowhere, the ground dropped out. Just plain disappeared as if it had never been there. Robin never finished his thought, as he withdrew unconsciously when the only thing in his mind became survival. The wind screamed past his ears before Robin knew they were falling - or was that Wally doing the screaming? For a moment, Robin was back in his dream, back in Gotham. Panic clutched at his heart. Where was the ground?

The voice in his head raged in his mind. He was stupid, so stupid. Wally was going to be killed because of him. His mistake... again. Could he do no right?

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Here's a question, readers. What do you think would be the highest a person could fall into water without risking suffering a fatality? PM me your answer, please, and I will give you a cookie!**


	4. Those Who Fly

**Hello everyone. Sorry for the wait. I finally decided to rebel on NaNoWriMo so that I could finish projects such as this one, so that's why I'm posting in November. :)**

**I want to thank all of my reviewers: Penny Tortoiseshell, donahermurphy, Guest (because I don't know who you are), Godismetons, Hesychia, dragonfairy16, and RobinIsAwesome. I'd like to also thank Penny Tortoiseshell for being my Beta for this chapter and all of its general crappyness. You rock, girl!**

**So, chapter 3 and still no plot. Eh, I've done worse. Tell me what you think, good or bad, and maybe give me a favorite if you like it. You people are what keeps me going! Hopefully there will be an update before the end of the month... probably next week since I'm using this for NaNo. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own this show, you silly people! Gah!**

**Now, if you'll excuse me, I must go and gush over some more Wreck It Ralph fanfiction. Enjoy the chapter! :D**

* * *

><p>Robin lost what breath he might have had left when he hit the water, the sheer force of his fall flattening his chest and leaving him light-headed. A painful slap next to him indicated that Kid Flash had reached to water. Any light that his wrist computer had previously given off had gone out on impact and Robin was left in the dark with a mouthful of water. He tried to move, but couldn't at first. Pain spread through his back like fire and he couldn't control his movements.<p>

Robin needed to move... he couldn't give up. Wouldn't that be funny? All the crazy things he'd gone through and he died on a stake-out. With that in mind, he blocked off the feeling part of his mind. Training kicked in and he swam the only direction he knew for sure, up.

Just as his lungs threatened to burst, Robin breached the surface of the water and gasped for air. He flailed around for a bit before his arms settled into a regular rhythm. With one arm, he reached down to his utility belt, digging around for something he had put in a long time ago, something that he had argued with Batman that he would never need. His fingers closed around a glow stick. He jerked it up and snapped it, putting the tube between his teeth so that he could use both arms. That was when he realized just how silent it was.

Wally! The thought came to him so suddenly that he scarcely took a breath before diving under the water. He was no Atlantean, but with his mentor, Robin was to be prepared for all situations. He went down, weaving between rocks. That was probably what took the speedster out. He must have hit his head on one of the jutting pillars of stone. Well, that... or passed out from his panic attack.

The glow stick only lit up a small amount of space, but Robin was determined. He came alongside a pillar and kicked off with his feet, taking a breath at the surface before diving down again. Could he get Miss Martian's attention? He tried, but the link was gone. He had to keep trying... The Boy Wonder's arms were becoming numb, even through the thick armor of his costume. He didn't want to know how cold the water was. He was down deep before he saw the semi-reflective red bolt of Kid Flash's costume. It took the remainder of Robin's strength and oxygen to pull the unconscious boy up.

It took a lot of concentration to hold up one body and stay afloat at the same time, especially when the body was larger than Robin, who was also attempting to find solid ground. He wrapped one arm around Wally and held up his light with the other, kicking rapidly to push them up and keep both of their heads above water. Wally suddenly jerked, nearly sending them both under again, and coughed up a great deal of water before falling still and silent again. Robin wished he could do something, but he had a hard enough time combating his own pain and the frigid water.

He glanced up, catching a small ring of darkness in the otherwise rocky ceiling. Robin couldn't tell exactly, but they had to have fallen at least one hundred feet. It was a wonder they hadn't both been killed by the fall into the still water, especially with the rocks below.

The ceiling curved down in one direction and up in the other, but either way could mean a dead end or an open expanse of water. If they didn't find somewhere quickly, they'd drown. Finally, with the weight of everything he'd been carrying for the past few days, he let himself just go. He didn't even think, just swimming, glow stick clutched between his teeth, awkwardly paddling with one arm. When he was considering stopping, just letting go and giving in to the spreading pain, his feet brushed against the ground and he opened his eyes. The glow stick was dim, so he was still swimming blind, but he suddenly had hope. The final push was the worst and every muscle protested, but the relief flooded him when he could finally stand. Robin moved behind Kid Flash and hooked his arms under the teen's arm pits and started the grueling task of pulling him to shallow water. They reached a rocky sort of beach.

When they were a few yards from the water, Robin stopped and lowered Kid Flash toward the ground. He checked for a pulse, fearing for a moment that he would find none, and upon the discovery of one he allowed himself a sigh of relief. He didn't much care where they were, just as long as they were no longer in the water.

Robin collapsed next to Kid Flash's still body, no energy to even check if his friend was okay past what he had already done. A tremor passed through his body as all of the pain he had been repressing came back. He closed his eyes and bit his lower lip to keep from yelling. He tasted blood. A thousand needles in his lower back... legs going numb. He realized he was shivering violently. So cold... _I wonder if they even know we're gone?_

* * *

><p><em>"So you're saying Gotham's protector just left? At a time when we needed him most... Sick bastard." Commissioner Gordon leaned against the bat signal on the roof of the building. "And he left you behind? How old are you, twelve?" Silence. "That's fine, whatever... Don't answer." Robin watched him from his perch on the overhang. The commissioner's face softened. "Why didn't he take you?"<em>

_ Robin spoke, but it was not him in control. "Because I wanted this. This city will fall, and I am the cause."_

_ "What are you going on about kid? I'm sure it wasn't your-"_

_ "I let them out of Arkham, see?" Robin smiled, and somewhere inside the real Robin felt a tremor of disgust. "This will be survival of the fittest. A war game. Who will win?" He stood up, walking toward Gordon. "Who will lose?" He was three steps from the commissioner when he spoke next. "Batman lost... He lost when he tried to stop me." _

_ "What do you mean? Lost?" James Gordon would have backed away if he hadn't already been pressed against a wall. He thought he already knew, but to think that would be terrible._

_ "Because he's dead." Robin leaned in with a whisper, "I made sure of that." His lip curled up in a snarl as Commissioner Gordon paled. "You won't try to do anything, right? Because you're next, Commissioner. How do you want to go?"_

* * *

><p>At first, he thought he was still at home in the Bat Cave perhaps, but when he opened his eyes the darkness reminded him of his location. Everything came back and his mind was left reeling when he realized just how many mistakes he had made in the past few hours. Everything from a poorly staged stake-out to a negligent infiltration. He could think of so many things he could have done differently, like knocking out the guards and keeping everyone together or at least checking the 'control' room closer for any traps. They had thrown caution into the wind, and it was all because they had wrongly put their trust in a thirteen-year-old. Robin felt sick.<p>

He rolled over and blinked, eyes falling on the still body of his best friend. The glow stick sat between them, lighting up the edges of either costume. For a second, Robin was worried that he hadn't been able to save Wally, but then he saw the subtle rise and fall of the teen's chest and the terrifying notion disappeared.

The Boy Wonder eased himself up, taking his time getting up because his body still ached. He wondered how long he'd been out. Too long, and the others might worry. When he accomplished sitting upright, Robin scooted himself closer to Wally and put a shaky hand on his shoulder. "Hey buddy, wake up." His voice surprised him at first. It was sort of wheezy and dry, but at least it was still there. "Come on, Kid, wake up." He shook Wally's shoulder a bit.

Robin always thought of himself as strong. He had taken control of his own life; he could take care of himself. But sometimes, he wondered if he could do it alone. If he lost his family and friends, would anything be the same? That fear fueled him, the fear that if he wasn't there to keep everyone safe that the whole world would just disappear, leaving Robin behind to face his demons alone. "Please Kid Flash..."

Wally West's body tensed and he coughed up more water. As he struggled to gain his breath, Robin pulled him up and held him in a sitting position and they sat that way for a while before the speedster looked blearily at Robin. The dark haired boy didn't know what hit him, but he choked out a laugh and hugged his older friend.

"What happened?" Wally asked, and then he hissed and put his hand to his head. "Ow, my head... Feels like I got punched through a wall. Not a nice feeling, mind you..." He squinted his eyes at Robin. "Why are you clinging to me like that?"

Robin pulled away, unable to wipe the relieved smile from his face. "I thought you'd drowned or something."

"Or something?"

"Do you remember what happened?"

Wally shook his head, frowning as he racked his brain. "Nothing... We were at the ship, and Kal - Aqualad said we were meeting up with you and Artemis. Then it's just kind of blurry." He shuddered. "Something about falling? I don't know."

"Well," Robin said, "you hit your head pretty hard - knocked yourself out. It's probably best if you don't remember all the details."

Wally looked horrified. "Were we attacked?"

"No... Well, sort of. Yes," Robin muttered. "But not really..."

"What kind of an answer is that?" Then Wally just looked angry, which left his face looking strangely twisted and shadowed in the dim lighting.

"I'm not sure."

"Okay, okay," Wally said quietly, clearly not wanting to fight. "Where are we?"

"We sort of fell through a hole in the floor and landed in some sort of cavern." At the look on Wally's face, Robin added, "I know it sounds ridiculous, but... You fell in the water; probably hit your head on one of the rocks. I swam us both here, wherever here is..." His voice faded out. Now that he thought about it, he didn't really know where they were, not even in relation to any of the surface areas. And with his computer broken, they had no communication to the surface, nor did they have a way to map out the area. His belt was waterlogged, so any electronics that he could safely use to light the area had been rendered useless. There was no way he'd be using his explosives since he was running low on them. His dive had jostled a few out of his belt. Robin glanced over at Wally, who had his knees drawn up to his chest and his arms wrapped around them, shivering violently. Robin himself wasn't doing much better. His fingers were numb and everything was stiff... Did he still have that emergency blanket in his belt? He hoped so.

It took a lot of effort to get his fingers moving, but when he did he sifted through a few of his pockets and finally came up with a neatly folded silvery space blanket, one of those thin sheets that looked like aluminum. He knew they were actually made out of a different material, and Robin couldn't possibly think of anything else he wanted more at the moment than some sort of warmth. His hands were shaking as he unfolded it. It was another one of the things that he had begrudgingly put in his already heavy utility belt after Batman suggested it. It hadn't been opened before, so he was pleasantly surprised as at the size of it. "Hey, Kid Flash. Look what I found," he called, and Wally looked up, frowning at the sheet.

"Is that one of those... things you keep in your car if it breaks down and you're, you know, stuck in the middle of-"

"Yeah," Robin cut him off before he could start rambling.

"You really keep one of those in your belt?"

"Are we really going there now? Do you want to use it or not?" Robin asked as he pulled it out and wrapped part of it over his shoulders.

"Sorry... stupid question." He hauled himself over to be next to Robin and took the other corner. It was just big enough for both of them to fit under it. After a few minutes of sitting under the blanket, Robin felt Wally slump beside him. In response to a questioning stare, Wally sighed. "What are we supposed to do? Fly to the surface? I'm not my uncle. I can't make tornadoes or...or...How are we supposed to get out?"

"I don't know."

Wally twisted around to look at Robin inquisitively. "But you always know!"

Robin felt the wrenching knot of guilt in his stomach. He usually did... whenever the others had any sort of problem, they turned to him for answers, sometimes even before presenting it to Kaldur. It frustrated him beyond the point of quelling the anger that had been swirling around in the back of his mind for weeks. "Well, maybe I don't," he barked. "Maybe I don't care. Maybe you should figure it out, make yourself useful for once." The words left his mouth before he could stop them. To most people, it wouldn't have sounded as bad, but he knew Wally had self-esteem issues and considered himself a waste of space. Heck, he'd even directly told Robin once, not too long ago... "Oh, man no! I'm sorry. I didn't mean that."

But the damage was already done. Wally inched far enough away that they were no longer touching and he could feel the speedster hunch over. "Sure you didn't." He glared over at Robin. "I don't need anyone else telling me how useless I am. I get that enough from my dad."

"Look, man... I'm just-"

"Shut up, okay? Just shut up."

Robin paused, face blank before a mixture of emotions went across it. "What?"

Kid Flash straightened up. "I said shut up, idiot. What, are you deaf or something?"

"This is not the time nor the place for you to-" He was interrupted by shove from the side. As he rolled out from under the blanket, clutching his side from pain, Robin peered up at Kid Flash with something between confusion and anger in his eyes. "What the hell was that for?"

"I told you to shut up."

"What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing," he said, sounding unsure. "What's wrong with you?"

Robin tried to sit up and hissed under his breath at the pain in his side. "God, Kid... Lay off it, won't you?" He couldn't sit up though, so he rolled over on his back, just sitting there. He felt angrier than usual. His temper was shorter and felt like he could just... break something. He wasn't violent, and he was hardly prone to showing his emotions, but it was something about the situation that made him just want to yell at someone for the sake of yelling. Maybe Wally felt the same way. After that show, though, he wasn't going to ask. Besides... it was weird talking about feelings and stuff, even if Wally was his best friend. Leave that stuff to the girls.

He sat there for a while, almost forgetting the cold and the shivering, almost slipping out of consciousness, when he felt a tentative tap on his shoulder. "Rob, man?"

"What?" he muttered.

"I just wanted to make sure you weren't dead. You haven't moved for like thirty minutes."

"I wish I were dead," Robin quipped. "Then I wouldn't have to worry about all this mess." He wanted that to end it. He didn't want to talk. He wanted to pretend he was angry and that they were trapped and that it wouldn't matter if he moved another inch because that wasn't going to help them a bit. But Wally wasn't having it, and he didn't sound all that sure that Robin's last statement was just a joke.

"We're going to make it out, yeah? So let's do that sooner than later."

"Sooner?" Robin aid. "So Batman can kick my but for doing a lousy job."

"Or congratulate you on uncovering a government conspiracy."

Robin sat up, aided by Kid Flash. "One does not simply get 'congratulations' from Batman."

"Well, at least you wouldn't be dead," Kid Flash said, and they settled into silence. What if they died? They weren't made for climbing walls or swimming or flying... They were made for cities and running and hand-to-hand combat. Robin dismissed those thoughts, disgusted at how twisted they had become. The least he could do was try.

"So what's the plan?" he asked.

"More light first?" suggested Kid Flash.

Robin sighed. "Yes, but we'll have to work quick once I pull these out. I'm running low on glow sticks and anything that could get damaged by water is soaked... Just my luck."

"What about the rebreathers?"

"What, you're thinking about diving deeper?" Robin asked. "Look man, I don't know about you, but we're already hundreds of feet underground and I'm not too keen on going any further."

"Oh, yeah," Wally said. He frowned. "What if you shot up a line? I don't feel like climbing, but that sounds like a pretty good option right now."

"My line cuts out at thirty feet," Robin said.

"So?"

"That wouldn't even get us halfway up, even if there was something to latch onto that high."

"Damn," Wally said, whistling. "That far?" He shuddered. "That's not a pleasant thought. But actually," he paused. "Have you even looked around this part of the land yet?"

"What?" Robin asked.

"Like... have you determined that there's no place to go other than straight up. What if we were to walk for a while and find a better option."

Robin took one look at the water then back to Wally. "It sounds better than anything we've thought so far. Let's try that."

* * *

><p>And so they ended up helping each other to standing positions and folding up the blanket - which they decided would be useful later but not for walking - and with Robin and his glow stick in the lead, they walked with their backs to the water into the darkness beyond. At first they did this without speaking, neither willing to risk that they might snap at each other again, but finally Robin could take no more.<p>

"So how is your mom doing?" Robin asked, not looking back.

The footsteps behind him missed a beat and there was a general amount of shuffling before he ever got an answer. "Oh, she's fine," he heard. "Why?"

Robin shrugged. "I heard Artemis ask if she was okay. Just curious, that's all."

There was shuffling again and Wally came up beside his younger friend. "She was sick."

"That's what I heard."

"A-anything else?" Kid Flash asked, and Robin couldn't tell if the tremor in his voice was from the cold, or some nerve that had just been exposed.

"No," Robin said, drawing out the O. "But I'm sure there's more to it if you're going to act like that."

"Act like what?"

"All nervous and defensive, like I'm going to point out your flaws and make your life miserable," Robin said.

Wally's humorless laugh filled up the darkness. "Like you haven't already done that."

"It was a slip of the tongue, a parapraxis, and I didn't mean it. I honestly don't know what came over me," he said. "I'm sorry."

After that he was worried he had somehow still managed to offend Kid Flash and that their conversation was over, but the speedster's next words stopped him in his tracks. "I don't know how much longer I can take this," Wally said, and at first Robin thought he was talking about the present situation, but the way Wally said it he knew it was more than that. They both stopped, the red-head a few steps ahead of Robin. The speedster's fingers were curled into half-made fists at his side and he was looking down and completely still. "My mom's been sick for six months, Rob. Six months. And that doesn't seem so long, but it is... and I can't do anything but watch as she's wasting away." He sniffed. "And Dad... well, he's not taking this well and sometimes he'll disappear for days at a time and then show up out of the blue, bleeding and drunk beyond caring and looking for a fight. Sometimes he..." Wally stopped and shook his head.

Robin hung awkwardly behind. He wasn't sure what he was supposed to do or say. "They said the disease is progressing do fast that she has only got another four months," Wally said softly. "Only three before she would be placed on life support." He looked back at Robin for the first time and the Boy Wonder could see the tear tracks on his face. "Sometimes when I go to visit her, she doesn't even remember my name. Multiple sclerosis, they said. Rare because it hit her so young and so quickly. For once I'm cursing my speed. Why can't everything just slow down? Why can't we just be a normal family..." He took a shaky breath. "I've just been telling everyone that she's just sick. That she's got allergies or something, so she gets a cold often and can't shake it as fast as everyone else." He laughed. "I feel silly, spilling my guts to you."

"It's not silly," Robin said, not trusting his own voice. "It's not silly at all." He couldn't say he was sorry, because that was probably all Wally had heard. Sorry never helped anyone. And he didn't want to say everything would get better, because that was false. Everything would get worse before it got better. And his conscience wouldn't allow him to draw any comparisons between his own life and his friend's... The best he could offer came in the form of an arm around the shoulder. "You don't have to go through this alone, you know. The Team will understand. We'll be with you if you need us."

"I don't want to be a burden. You guys shouldn't have to worry about my life," Wally replied.

"Does Artemis know?"

Wally shook his head. "I only told you because I've known you the longest... I just didn't want her fussing over me."

"She wouldn't be fussing. You know she cares about you. We all do."

Wally nodded, biting his lip to keep from crying. "I know."

"We've got your back, bro," Robin said.

"I know."

They were quiet again and Wally pulled away from Robin. "Let's just keep going," he said, and Robin nodded. He didn't have anything else to say, and as Wally had said earlier... They'd need to get out sooner than later.

* * *

><p>Robin was beginning to think he was becoming delirious by the time they even seemed to make any headway. Apparently the cavern was much larger than he originally imagined, and the land they were walking on didn't seem to have an end. Not that he was complaining... He'd much rather walk than swim. He just wished his flashlight hadn't blinked out. He was already down three glow sticks and after taking inventory, he realized they had only a few left. So much for walking in the light.<p>

In fact, if he didn't have to worry so much about Wally's phobias, he'd have long ago just resolved to walk in the dark. Maybe that was just the bat speaking.

The walking gave him time to think, and leave it to his stupid brain to bring up things that he didn't want to think about. Mostly, it was the dreams. The echoing laughter in his head that just wouldn't stop, or the anger that rushed through his mind whenever he was a part of his night terrors. It just wasn't him.

The lights up ahead, however, were enough to stop his mind from puzzling and he put a hand out to stop Wally, who had been looking down at his feet ever since their conversation. Wally looked up, surprised and then curious. "What?"

"Do you see that?" Robin asked.

Wally squinted. "No... wait, yeah. What's that?"

"I don't know," Robin said. "Stay close."

They moved slower as they went toward the light, however the closer they got, the more confusing it became. Finally Wally just stopped. He started laughing, a little crazily at first. "Well isn't that just convenient."

Robin wrinkled his nose. "Turbing," was all he said. Their light was the single lantern attached to the frame of an elevator shaft. Out in the middle of nowhere, under the ground hundreds of feet, and this was what they found. Robin wasn't sure what he felt about.

"Well, I mean... Can't we just, you know, use it?" Wally asked.

"If anything, it's a trap," Robin said. "Who puts an elevator in the middle of an underground graveyard."

"Someone who wants to make sure the people they dropped are dead?"

"Maybe," Robin said. He moved closer, scrutinizing every inch of the shaft that he could see from where he was. He shifted back on his feet and let out a whistle.

"What?"

"Mine. This used to be a mine," Robin said. "You can tell by the way it's built."

"How do you know what that's supposed to look like?"

Robin tapped his head. "Job experience."

"Yeah, right," Wally said. "So, we riding up or what?"

"Not riding," Robin said. "I know you said you weren't in the mood, but either you're climbing with me, or you're going to have to stay down here in the dark. "It didn't take long for Wally to decide. He muttered something under his breath, but nodded all the same. Another glance at the integrity of the thing, and Robin stepped to one side. "It's probably best if you go first," he said. "Just in case you fall or something."

"Yeah," Wally said, and he started climbing. They were making good progress when a fierce whisper from Wally caught Robin's attention.

"Huh?"

"Look up," Wally said. "There's someone coming."

Robin did, and he found the car of the elevator hurtling down toward them. "Okay, you're going to have to trust me on this," he whispered back at Wally.

"What?"

"Jump."

Wally looked horror stricken for a moment, but he did what he was told. Both boys jumped at about the same time. Robin, in the middle of all of this, twisted around in the air, hoping his plan would work, and shot one of the lines up at the wall, which was finally in reach. Just as the red head was about to fall out of his range, Robin darted a hand down and grabbed his upper arm, grunting as more weight was put on his right arm. As they swung toward the wall, he put his legs out in front of him, and stopped them just before they slammed into it. Using what was left of his strength, he looped the wire around his wrist until they were up high enough for him to clip it to his belt. When it hooked, he let go and they dropped down a bit.

Both boys were panting loudly, but as the cart approached both fell still and silent. "Too close," Wally hissed.

"Yeah."

"Can you get us back over?"

"Only if we can climb fast enough to not meet them again," Robin replied. "I don't know if I could do this again."

"Fast isn't a problem for me," Wally said.

"I know, Kid. But I'm just saying," he muttered. "We don't know how long whoever it is will be down there." Robin wasn't in the mood to continue talking, so he shot another line at the elevator shaft and let go of the other line. When they reached the shaft again, he let go of Wally's arm. "Just climb."

* * *

><p>Just about the time he was feeling the burn of climbing, they reached the top. It was a bit difficult to get up, as the shaft just sort of ended on the outside, merging with the ceiling. The only way to continue up was to find a way inside. Getting inside meant some very strange maneuvers. Robin shuddered. He was used to heights, but he didn't want to think about falling, not when he didn't have Batman or his teammates looking out for him. Wally was cool and all, but he wouldn't be able to save the Boy Wonder if he fell, and vice-versa.<p>

Flipping around one of the metal beams, Robin squeezed in between two of the wires and lost his balance for a second. A quick change of direction sent him back on course and soon he was clinging to the edge. Wally wasn't as lucky and ended up hanging precariously from one hand for a moment before he found another hand hold. When he made it, he nodded up at Robin and they began climbing again.

At the top, Robin peeked over the edge before quickly putting both arms over the edge and pulling himself up. He turned around and helped Wally up and they both sat at the top, giggling like school girls. It was kind of funny, Robin had to admit. Neither of them were in their right mind at that moment.

The sound of the car coming up again shook them out of their thoughts and sent them both running toward the other side of the room. It wasn't a particularly large room, but it was dark and a bit warmer than below. They settled for hiding under a table in the corner and Robin hoped whoever was coming up was preoccupied enough not to notice them.

There were two people that exited the cart. One was a short woman with dark hair and eyes and olive skin and the other was a hooded figure that seemed to glide through the room. The woman followed it and quickly came around in front of it to open the door. The hooded figure glanced around the room, and Robin could have sworn it looked right at them before it strode past the woman and the two left.

"Who was that?" Wally asked.

"No idea," said Robin, "but from the way he was treated, I can assume he's one of the top dogs here."

"He? How could you tell."

"His stride." Robin looked over at Wally. "So, Kid Flash. How do you feel about following him and figuring out what's going on."

"I'm game if you're game."

"Asterous."

* * *

><p><strong>Who is this mysterious baddie and what is he doing? Find out next time on What If Everything Was Gone!<strong>

**(Like my TV pitch? I seriously need to get a shorter title for this. Its tiring to write. Bleh.)**


	5. Broken Shadows

**What's this? A really super late update that I promised ages ago? Wow… Sorry. After NaNo, I realized there were some pretty obvious plot holes in this story, and being the lazy writer that I am, I marked these scenes "finish writing later" and went on my merry way to the next chapter… Sadly, as these are updated chapter by chapter, I realized later that I don't actually have the luxury of throwing scenes around and leaving little notes to finish important scenes later and "add character development here" with a little arrow pointing to sloppily written descriptions.**

**So here's an almost disappointingly short chapter, as I cut a good majority of it out from last minute runaway plots. It is NOT filler, however, so it had to be done.**

**Warning for some language (silly KF and his potty mouth). Also, there's a little bit of graphicness here, but not enough for any worry. That'll come later. This is relatively mild compared to later chapters.**

**Disclaimer: Do I own Young Justice? Yes, yes I do. That's why I'm posting on a site for Fanfiction…. *sigh***

* * *

><p>Something about the hallways reminded Robin of the Gotham alleyways. Sure, they were entirely different things, but he couldn't help but draw comparisons from the elongated shadows and the filth that filled the passages, and the tight spaces that almost made him feel claustrophobic but didn't because his training didn't allow for that. They moved quietly behind the hooded figure and the short, dark-haired woman, Robin taking the lead and making sure that Wally didn't make too much noise or step out of the shadows. They had made it that far and it would irk him if they were caught after that tiring trek below.<p>

He was still shivering from the cold, biting down to keep his teeth from chattering. He stole a glance back at Kid Flash, who was hunched over, arms wrapped around his chest. He met Robin's eyes and gave him a questioning look. Robin shook his head and turned back.

They were at a sort of intersection in the pathways, and Robin leaned around the corner, just catching the wave of fabric indicating the hooded man disappear around one of the winding corners down the left path. He quickened his pace and made it to the next turn, repeating the glance around the corner before moving again.

It was doing this that they fell into an easy pattern of following and waiting and looking, and then repeating that again. The tunnel system seemed to have no end, and the farther they went, the more Robin began to worry about how they would get back. Well, it wasn't really worrying... It was more planning for something he knew might not go as planned. It was a quickly buried worry, as he didn't feel he had time for that. He was more just going over the possible identities of their probable cultists in his mind.

That's what they reminded him of, a cult. After watching the workers and the woman, and even the guards, he came to the conclusion that they were working under the pretense of something great. They almost seemed brainwashed. And from the snatches of conversation from the figures ahead, he was finding that harder and harder to deny.

And even without his computer, he was already thinking of people who would most likely join with whoever was behind this. Cadmus and STAR Labs had always had a close association with the Light, and Robin could pinpoint the people who would actually want to be in on it. That didn't narrow it down too much, as there were several people on his list, but it was at least comforting to have some things for fact, even if he was keeping an open mind toward the issue.

The latest turn brought them to a large room. It was some sort of central area, as there were plenty of people milling about and similar tunnels leading off from the edges of the room. Robin and Kid Flash found a relatively safe place behind a rather large stack of crates. "So, plan yet?" Kid Flash asked.

Robin huffed and looked around the edge, watching the people moving past. "There are a lot more people than we originally planned for," he said. "I'm going to need to change up the plan."

Kid Flash shook his head. "I really thought we saw them all when Batman did that heat signature thing."

"It's not actually that hard to mask heat signatures," said Robin, and he looked up. "I'm going to climb up and have a look from above. You stay down and keep our position."

The speedster nodded and watched as Robin scaled the boxes. From the top, Robin could see the entirety of the large room. There had to be hundreds of people, carving quick pathways through lines of machinery and boxes. The walls glittered with moisture and reflected the lights from above in an almost blinding light. On the far side, Robin could make out trucks moving sluggishly down a steep incline. Funny, he couldn't remember seeing anyone travelling the road as they were arriving, and that was the only road they could take. He looked back down to the area closer, eyes flitting between people as he looked for one man in particular. Finally, he caught him, just a flicker of dark cloth disappearing around a corner. Robin memorized the location and started to climb down.

Suddenly he stopped. A commotion down below caught his attention. He glanced down at Kid Flash, who was looking up at him with a questioning look on his face, and then he started back up. At the top it took him a moment to find what he was looking for, but when he did he nearly lost his grip. From that far away, he could only make out the blurred shapes and colors of their costumes. He watched as they were brought forward, and he could see them carrying... Superboy? He climbed down and dropped down beside Kid Flash.

"What is it?" Kid Flash asked, urgency in his tone.

"They've got everyone else."

"What?" he asked. "But..."

Robin shook his head. "I don't know how, and I don't know their conditions. All I saw was that they were carrying Superboy."

"Yikes... If they've got him out, he's our tank, they must have some pretty strong-"

"No offense, but that's not important right now. We need to decide what we're going to do... now," Robin said. He didn't want to think what might happen to the team if they didn't act soon.

"Sorry," said Kid Flash. "Do you think we can risk getting them ourselves?"

Robin shook his head decisively. "Looking at this realistically, if they were able to overpower them, we wouldn't stand a chance. Besides, do you really want to give away our position in this room?"

Kid Flash looked around the edge of the boxes. "No," he said. "But we've got to do something. What about our hooded guy?"

"I know which tunnel he went down, but that's it." Robin sighed. "I'm going back up to see what they do with them. You keep watch down here and think of something."

Once again he was scaling the boxes. Even in the short time that he was down with the speedster, the situation had changed again. Somehow Artemis had wrenched away from her captors and Kaldur was struggling. A gunshot stopped the commotion. It was a warning shot, fired into the air to bring silence, and Robin froze. The one who fired the initial shot had his gun touched to Artemis's forehead. She was still and eyeing him with a mixture of fear and anger. Kaldur had ceased struggling as more gunmen circled them, and he grabbed the scruff of Wolf's neck to keep the creature from charging, and the large wolf let out a low whining sound.

Robin heard the boxes shift below and looked down to see Kid Flash slowly stand. He turned around. "Kid, don't. Don't you dare," he hissed. "You know we can't fight them."

"But Artemis..." Kid Flash was shaking.

Robin looked back at the scene. Artemis was staring defiantly down the barrel of the gun. The Boy Wonder silently prayed to anyone who might hear that the girl would back down. There was no way she would survive a bullet to the head. The man pulled back the gun and aimed a hit at Artemis, striking her across the chest and slamming her to the ground.

"Artemis, no!" Then there was a sudden burst of sound below, and Robin clawed at the crate he was on as not to fall while parts of the pile fell around him. A blur of black rushed away from the pile toward his teammates. Kid Flash was trying to take things into his own hands.

"Kid, you idiot," Robin muttered under his breath, and he was down and following the speedster within seconds. He wasn't near as fast as Kid Flash, but he still dove between feet and jumped over equipment, cutting through the room with considerable speed. By the time he reached Kid Flash, there was already a ring of people around them, reaching out and throwing themselves at the young heroes.

Robin jumped up on the back on one of the men, using the momentum as the man fell to springboard himself to someone who had gotten too close to Artemis's still form. A strong kick to the jaw sent that person wheeling backwards and Robin turned just in time to dodge a punch sent at him from another. The next punch that came his way was caught, and Robin pulled that man's arm behind his back and pushed him into the other that was struggling to get up. Three down. The Boy Wonder looked around. They didn't have a chance, not with all the people. Not like this.

Something alerted his senses and he spun around, ready to block an attack, but stopped when he saw it was Kaldur. Kaldur nodded down at Artemis. "I'll cover her. You go help Kid Flash."

Robin nodded and looked back at where Wally was holding them off on his own. "Try to get them out," he said to Kaldur, and the Atlantean nodded.

"I will," he said. "We will meet at the bioship?"

"Yeah." And Robin didn't stay to watch as Kaldur leaned over and gingerly lifted Artemis into his arms. He instead ran toward Kid Flash, ducking under attacks aimed at him and retaliating with well-aimed birderangs. Two of them were explosive, sending people flying back and yelling in pain, but he didn't stop because he could see them closing in around his red-headed friend. With a chuckle he leapt up and grabbed the heads of two men who had been standing side by side and slammed them together, effectively knocking them over and giving him an opening to slide in beside Kid Flash.

"I couldn't stop," Kid Flash immediately said when Robin took a position behind his back.

"Don't apologize," Robin said through gritted teeth. "It was a stupid move, but it's too late to take it back. Let's just go with it." He tossed an explosive toward one of the trucks and took out one of the guards from before. "Aqualad is taking Artemis back."

Kid Flash cast a glance in the direction where Aqualad had gone. He frowned. "What about Superboy?"

As if in response, a roar of rage filled the air and machines went flying. There, standing in the middle of the mess, was Superboy, grabbing anyone unlucky enough to be nearby by their heads and tossing them like rag dolls through the air. "There's your answer," Robin said, and he leapt out of the way of one of the flying bodies with a cackle. Kid Flash flourished a smile and though they were all tired, they all had a new burst of energy and it was this that kept them clearing the way.

Somehow, Robin had ended up alongside Superboy, not ten feet from Kid Flash, and that was when things turned sour. It was Superboy that heard it first, and he grabbed Robin's shoulder, stopping him mid leap. Robin landed hard on his feet and was about to rebuke the Kryptonian, but he realized why he'd been stopped. Two men had Kid Flash by either arm and he was struggling against them. The man that had aimed a gun at Artemis earlier was approaching from one of the tunnels across the room, carelessly fiddling with his pistol as he approached.

When he saw what they were planning, Superboy made to move toward Kid Flash but Robin grabbed his arm and stopped him.

"Smart move," the man said, eyeing the young heroes. "You wouldn't want any," he stopped his twirling and aimed the gun at Wally, "accidents." Superboy stopped. "Much better," said the man. Behind him, two other people dragged a struggling wolf, and Robin could see Superboy tense. They were all caught once again, and this time no one was waiting in the shadows to free them. Robin and Superboy were both grabbed roughly from behind as they were surrounded and forced closer to Kid Flash until they were standing in a line. "Now," said the man. "We only need one alive for this plan, and I suppose it will be hardest to execute the Kryptonian... Besides," the man said, throwing a glance at the heroes, "Cadmus still has its uses for him. Pull him out of the line." He gestured dismissively at Superboy and the men that held onto him drove him away from his teammates.

"Now, the executive would like to send a little message to the League about sending the sidekicks to nose around in his business," he said, once again aiming the gun at Wally. "And who am I to let such trivialities impair my judgment? Wouldn't it be a nice message for one of the little sidekicks to turn up dead on their doorstep?" His finger brushed the trigger. "I think you'll be first. And then I'll let the little Robin drag the body back to his superiors." He let the silence stretch so the message could sink in, and his lips curved up in a terrible grin as he saw the realization hit the speedster's face. There was hardly any warning when he pulled the trigger.

Robin didn't think, he just moved, throwing himself in front of his best friend without pondering the consequences. An explosion of pain pulsed through his chest as if he had been slammed into an invisible wall and he fell back into Wally's arms from the force behind the shot. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Superboy aiming punch after punch at the man with the gun. He must have acted at the same moment, messed up the aim, but he couldn't stop the shot in time.

It was a strange feeling. He'd been clipped before, but never full-on hit, and he wasn't sure whether it was the blood or the spreading numbness that frightened him more. Small sprays of blood tinged his lips crimson as he breathed, and it was a very difficult task, breathing, as the pressure continued to build. Everything was slow, and he wondered briefly if this was how Wally saw the world. Hands quickly covered the wound and a voice buzzed in ears, but he wasn't listening because his legs were giving out beneath him and weren't those spots in his vision strange?

His breaths were agonizingly painful and terribly short and every breath was like a knife in his lungs. Then there was the pain - the most excruciating, truly agonizing experience of pain he had ever known, and it filled up his head, consuming all of his thoughts.

.

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><p>If he hadn't been in pain before, he was then. His whole body was stiff and he couldn't carry any one thought for more than a short amount of time. It took all of his self-control to keep from jerking awake. He wanted to figure out where he was before he gave himself away, so he didn't move and kept his breathing as even as he could, and he listened. It was quiet at first, just the quiet thrum of machines that he had become accustomed to underground at Kane's Point, so he figured that they were still there. He was aware of muttering to his right that sounded a lot like Kid Flash. He couldn't tell what was being said, but whatever he was saying was being repeated over and over, blending in to the background noise.<p>

He chanced opening his eyes a crack, not enough to be noticed, and took in what he could. He was in a room, Wally was to his right, and both were firmly attached to the wall by metal cuffs that rubbed unpleasantly against his skin. He didn't keep his eyes open for long though, as he heard someone approaching and Wally's monotonous words stopped. Robin instead focused on flexing the muscles across his body to assess just how well he had been tied up. While he was doing this he listened.

"Still here, little Flash?" a familiar voice asked.

"Fuck you," he heard Kid Flash say.

"Not a very nice thing to say when someone has spared your life. If I hadn't gotten there quicker, the whole lot of you would have been put down execution style. Did you want that?" It was the hooded man from earlier.

Kid Flash laughed bitterly. "Spared my life? Were you the one that jumped in front of that bullet?"

"Don't worry about your friend. He will be put out of his misery soon enough. It is either you or him, and unless you'd like to stay here until you starve to death, you'd be better off just letting him go. I don't know if we can save your friend at this point."

Robin took a shuttering breath and the air rattled in his throat. They were talking about him. They were talking about him as if he wouldn't make the night. Kid Flash jerked against his shackles beside him. "I'll kill you. When I get out I'll fucking kill you!"

"What a mouth," the man said. "Does your mentor know you have no respect? Or is he the same way?"

"Shut up. Why can't you just shut up?"

"Make me."

There was rattling again as Robin could guess the riled up teenager struggled. If they were tied up in even remotely the same way, Robin realized that Kid Flash was opening all sorts of wounds on his wrists and ankles. Oh, that was another thing. He was barefoot. They had taken his shoes, his utility belt, his cape, and any weapon that he had stashed on his person. That left him feeling utterly exposed.

The metal started clattering and Robin could hear the hooded man say, "So now you're going to vibrate through to me? How pathetic. Maybe it would have been better to kill you, to save the Flash the embarrassment of... well, you. How could someone like you get to be a hero? I can think of so many better to take your place." The rattling increased. "You can't even get through those! Ha! Well, the door is unlocked whenever you get out of there, little speedster. Don't tire yourself out." The slamming of the door indicated that the man had left and the rattling stopped almost as quickly as it had started, and the sound of someone yanking once more for good measure.

"You know that isn't going to get you out, right?" Robin said finally, voice barely above a whisper. For a moment, he thought Kid Flash hadn't heard him. He opened his eyes and looked over at his friend. His condition surprised him.

Kid Flash had dark blood slowly dripping down his wrists, leaving red stains on the visible skin on his arms where his costume had been ripped, there were cuts on his bare feet and exposed skin (Robin had been right when he thought they'd stripped them down), and he had a terrible shiner on his face where someone must have gotten him earlier. He was looking over at Robin with a mix of relief and surprise.

"What did they do to you?" Robin whispered.

"I fought back... guess I couldn't hold them off, not after they got Superboy with the kryptonite." He sighed. "You don't look too much better yourself. How are you even conscious?"

Robin shook his head. "I'm running on adrenaline, I think. A bit in shock. I don't want to think about it." He followed Wally's eyes to his chest and immediately looked away. No, he couldn't think about it or he would lose what control he had. He measured his breaths, which were becoming more and more difficult, trying to let the calm seep through his body. "Kevlar kept it from going too deep, I think," he said. "Stopped some of the force. I don't even think it went through... Probably ribs broken though. That's why I can't breathe..."

"Just stop talking man, it looks like it hurts."

"I've got to get us out."

"Not in that condition."

Robin sent a glare in Kid Flash's direction. "Do you want to stay and see what they're going to do to us?"

"T-they said they were going to release us."

"After one of us is dead."

That shut the speedster up and Robin started looking for weak spots in his shackles. It took some maneuvering, but he managed to get a comfortable position to start working on one of his arms. It was easy enough, as Batman had run training that started off with bindings that were far harder to get out of, even without a lock pick. However, during training, he wasn't usually sporting life-threatening wounds. It took him about ten minutes in the first one, and then the other arm was a breeze. He kept a good hold on the wall to keep from falling forward to hang by his feet, and then he worked on his ankles.

It was true that they had done a lot less to keep him tied up, as the enemy probably thought he would hardly be able to stay conscious, let alone escape. When he finally broke free, he landed lightly on his feet and wobbled until he caught his balance, and then he made his way over to Kid Flash, who had his eyes closed and his chin resting on his chest. The boy nearly jumped out of his skin when Robin started working on his arms. "God, you scared me... How the hell did you get out?"

Robin didn't answer, continuing to work on the chains, even when the darkness had crept around the edge of his vision and he was feeling lightheaded. The final one was the hardest, and when it came off he wobbled uncertainly before Kid Flash held him up. "We've got to go," Wally said as he kept his younger friend from falling. "You've lost way to much blood. You're in no condition to-"

"I'm fine. I've had worse."

"Worse?"

Robin paused. "Gotham's no place for anyone to grow up. I should know." He was already moving toward the door, doing the best to look like he was okay, that he could walk just fine, thank you very much, and that he wasn't about to pass out. At the door he stopped. "Do you know the way out?"

"No," was Wally's answer.

"What about where our stuff went?"

"Like our shoes and your belt? They stripped us in the room and went in the opposite direction with the stuff."

Robin groaned. "Figures... Do you remember the way back to that big room?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Those trucks have to come from somewhere, right? So we can get out through there," he said.

"Nice thinking," Wally said, nodding. "But can you make it that far?" Robin, who was leaning against the wall, his sides heaving, wanted to nod and say that yes he could, but he knew he couldn't. He shook his head. Suddenly, Robin found himself scooped up in Kid Flash's arms before he could protest. "Okay, I'll carry you then. It will be faster anyway."

When Kid Flash got the door open, they were gone. He weaved between startled people and down hallways, knocking people back and trailing dust behind him. They were going so fast that Robin couldn't focus on what was going past and only tried his best to keep his death grip on Kid Flash's arm. The wind rushed past his face and it felt like someone was trying to peel his skin off. Directly after it stopped, Robin found himself feeling sick and he wasn't sure whether it was from the run or his injuries or a combination of both. "We're here," Kid Flash said, and he out Robin down next to him and slid to the ground. They were in a dark corner behind a row of parked carrier trucks.

Robin nodded and tried to catch his breath. He looked down and then did a double take. "Kid, your feet," he said. The boy's feet were smeared red and were hard to look at, especially if one was queasy. Running barefoot might not have been the best idea, and Robin could tell Wally felt the same by the dazed look on the boy's face. Neither had any first aid equipment.

"I know," Kid Flash said. "Let's just figure out where we need to go."

"We can't just leave Superboy."

"Robin, we're in no shape. Let's go back and get Miss Martian."

He couldn't lose another team member. "No."

"Look at yourself, Rob. You can't even walk."

"I can walk!"

"No, you can't. You can't fight like this; you could hardly make it across the room."

"Where did they take Superboy?" Robin asked.

"No."

"We'll just scope out the area. No confrontations."

"That's what you said about this mission."

Robin frowned. "You were the one that ran in. Let's check. It'll give Miss Martian an advantage and then we can call the League."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

Kid Flash took a deep breath and exhaled before opening his eyes and making to stand up. "Okay. Come on, I'll take you." Before he could grab Robin, the boy gritted his teeth and leaped up to cling to Kid Flash's back. "Or that. You could do that," the speedster said.

* * *

><p><strong>So what do you think? Too corny? Please let me know if anything doesn't add up.<strong>

**I've never been shot before so I wouldn't know.**

**Also, I reply to every review if I can so it helps if you're logged in. If not, I want to thank you still for the nice reviews. I love you guys and you're what keeps me going when my interest in a story starts to weaken! :D**

**A special thank you to ImpressedDane for the awesome reviews! :)**


	6. Before Misanthropy

**Whew, so it's been awhile since I updated. I'd shower you guys with excuses, but really, other than some difficulty at the end of the chapter, it shouldn't have taken me this long. I'm sorry. I know I'm evil sometimes. **

**Chapter five is where things start clicking into place and the plot begins. You'll see why. Chapter 6 is already finished, save for an ending, but I'd like to make some headway before the next post. **

**Without further ado... **

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><p>Chapter Five - Before Misanthropy<p>

As they sped through the halls, Robin managed to get past his sickness enough to realize that not a thing had changed. There were still hardly any people filling the hallways, and the ones that were there didn't seem to be in any sort of hurry as they might have been, as they should have been. Two prisoners escaped and there weren't any alarms or raised watches. Any guards, he figured, were on the upper levels. Whoever ran this place must have been pretty sure that no one would get past the guards, and if they did, they wouldn't manage to get any information.

Well, Robin was starting to wonder if there really was anything to gather here. He didn't have access to his wrist computer anymore, but before it had been immersed in freezing water and bashed around on rocks he had glanced over the downloaded files. While there had been information, he was smart enough to realize that the whole of it was hogwash, useless, and a waste of memory on his hard drive. These were the same files Batman had briefed them with and there was little to no development on any of the stolen machinery.

It was as if this place had been sitting there, an invented anomaly, only springing to life when the team of young heroes showed up. It didn't make sense.

Kid Flash stopped when they reached an ominous set of metal doors, Robin sliding off his back, and both of them dropped down in the corner of the hallway. It wasn't like they needed cover. There wasn't anyone around anyway. "This is it."

Robin didn't look at Kid Flash, instead focusing his eyes on the doors, looking for weaknesses and possible entrances. "How do you know?"

"I overheard a conversation. They said something about taking a clone to a containment center, I'd think that was Superboy, and that he was fighting back pretty badly and they ended up pulling Kryptonite on him," Kid Flash quickly supplied. "I really don't like the odds, Rob. We know where they're keeping him now, so we can get back up and contact the League on the bioship."

"We don't need the League," he said, going back on his original words. "We can handle this ourselves. Besides, they'll just call attention to this case," he said. He knew they'd already blown it, but enough of his usual stubbornness remained that he wasn't open to second opinions.

"Like we haven't already."

"Kid, stop it. I'm not arguing with you. If you want to go back, go ahead, but I least feel I owe him for keeping us from dying."

"You were shot! You might feel like you're okay right now, but have you seen how much blood you've lost? How are you even still awake? You'll pass out any minute now, and we can't risk that being in the middle of a fight," Kid Flash said, his voice unusually commanding. "We don't even have our stuff. You especially don't have the resources to run in. If they could contain Superboy and detain the Team as easily as they did, what makes you think that you can just stop them on your own?"

Robin looked down, his hands balled into fists. They were shaking now, his hands, and not because he was angry. He couldn't control it, and it was getting worse. He had almost lost his grip on Kid Flash's costume twice because of that. "I can make it. If we get him out, we can leave. No need to bother the League, because they all think we're useless kids anyways." He shook his head. "Not Batman, or even Black Canary... but the others, save a few, don't trust us with anything." Robin looked over at Kid Flash to see him looking away, as if he hadn't been paying attention, but he knew the speedster well enough to know that he was thinking about what Robin had said.

Finally he turned to Robin. "Okay... Fine," he said. "But if you die, it's not my fault."

Robin managed to pull the ends of his chapped lips up into a smile. More like a grimace, but who was to judge? "Okay," Robin said.

"You know, you've already broken that promise we made earlier," Kid Flash added.

"We never shook on it."

The speedster rolled his eyes. "Whatever... So what's the plan?"

"We need to get in first," Robin said. "You're sure this is where they took Superboy?"

"Absolutely."

"Alright," Robin said, and he tapped his chin thoughtfully for a moment, waiting for his sluggish mind to respond. An idea, not an original or particularly spectacular on, popped into mind. "Hold on, and wait for me. When the doors open, make sure they don't close before I get back." He paused and looked over his shoulder before turning back to Kid Flash. "Actually, if you can't keep them shutting before I get back, go ahead and go in."

Kid Flash shot him a puzzled glance. "What are talking about?"

Robin rolled his eyes. "I'm going to open the doors and we're going to go inside. Simple as that."

"And how are you going to open them?"

"Just leave it to me," Robin said.

Kid Flash stared at him for a second, probably the speedster's idea of a long time, and then let out a long drawn out sigh and scrunched down further in his spot. "Hurry up," he said simply. That was it. No good luck or be careful, because both were too tired and in too much pain to worry about more or to even care.

Robin nodded once and pushed himself to his feet, wincing when black spots danced in his vision. He stumbled a bit, his left foot scrapping the ground as he lurched forward and finally gained his balance. He didn't look back to see if Kid Flash had seen it and merely continued in the direction he started, slowly getting to a comfortable gait as he turned the corner.

As he had observed earlier, there were no people to be seen down the hallway, and not a sound betrayed the presence of anything else. He was worried for a split second that his plan wouldn't work because of the lack of anything or anyone around. Robin pushed that thought out of his mind when, after glancing into a number of rooms along the way, he came across a suitable computer. He leaned against the desk and tapped at the keys as he broke past firewalls and cracked pass codes. It would have been a lot easier if he had his wrist computer, but there wasn't much he could do. He just hoped he'd be able to get back to the doors before his new program was discovered.

A faint beep from the computer told him he'd succeeded, and he used his hands to push himself from the desk and give him momentum. He got to the door and skidded around the corner, and ran as fast as his wobbling legs could take him. He reached Kid Flash, who was standing in the large doorframe looking rather determined to keep them from closing again, moments later, and he grabbed the boy's arm and pulled him inside just as the metal screeched back together to shut off the entrance.

Closing so quickly meant that whoever was in charge had been watching, which meant they needed to hurry unless they wished to be an a worse state than they were presently.

"Now what?" Wally hissed. "We're stuck inside."

"We find Superboy, get him out, and then see if he can break down the doors," Robin replied.

"And if he can't?"

Robin didn't answer, instead focusing on surveying the area for security cameras or personnel. Upon seeing nothing suspicious, which was suspicious in itself, he moved away from the metal doors and started doing his best to go between stations. The holding area, which was what he decided to call it, contained several units of containment cells and various lab stations location near each particular group of cells. As far as the usual villain stomping grounds, this area, as well as the whole base, was extensive and complex. The head of this operation had time and money.

He could hear Kid Flash's footsteps behind him and he didn't need to turn around to know that the teen was close on his heels. "We can split up. It'll go faster," he said. The footsteps receded.

The holding area was absolutely empty. It didn't even look as if the area had been used in quite some time, and Robin found himself wondering if Wally had been mistaken when he saw them leading Superboy in this direction. He almost gave the room up for lost, but something small and seemingly insignificant caught his eyes. It was just a long scrape across the floor that could have meant anything, but Robin had worked with Batman long enough to realize the signs of a struggle when he saw them. He leaned over it to get a closer look. It was black and looked fairly recent. It could have been caused by someone forcefully dragging their foot across the ground.

From the ground he looked up. There, the edge of the desk had scratches across the surface. Robin moved to the desk and from around the corner of it caught another skid mark. He was moving faster the more he saw. Skid marks across the ground, scratches on nearby items of furniture, broken containers that had been knocked from the shelf... Someone had been forced through here, and while there might have been attempts to clean up, the damage had already been done.

Robin rounded another corner and found Superboy slumped over in the corner of a cell. His face, paler than usual, was tinted green from the light emanated by a faintly glowing stone set in the doorway. Kryptonite. No wonder he had been taken so easily. Even with one of the Team injured, Superboy wouldn't have just sat by and watched. Robin leaned against the door of the cell, pushing it aside easily. They really hadn't planned on him escaping, or at least hadn't planned on a rescue party.

"Hey, Supey," Robin whispered. "Superboy, can you hear me?" He crouched down next to the teen and placed a hand on either shoulder. "Come on, wake up."

Superboy's eyes opened slowly. His eyes were glassy and he wasn't focusing on anything, but at least he was conscious. "Can you move?" Robin asked, and Superboy blinked before shifting his head a bit. Robin frowned at him for a bit, looking between the Kryptonite and the Kryptonian. There was no way he was going to be able to dislodge the rock and he didn't think he could drag Superboy far enough away on his own. "Wait here," he said, not realizing the absurdity of the comment until he was already moving between stations to find Kid Flash.

Kid Flash found him first. "There's nothing here!" he said upon seeing Robin, looking ruffled. "I thought-"

"Whoa, KF." Robin stopped him. "I found him on the other side, but I'm going to need your help to move him."

"To move him?"

"Kryptonite, in his cell."

"Oh," Kid Flash said with a nod.

Robin led the way and they found Superboy sitting in the cell, not having moved and inch since Robin left to find Kid Flash. They got on either side of him and took hold of his arms, and together dragged him out of the cell and down the pathway. The farther away they got from the cell, the more Superboy seemed to be coming to. Robin found himself in a conflict between feeling accomplished and worried that they hadn't seen anything for some time.

Finally they were back at the doors, both boys out of breath as they moved Superboy's body against the wall. Kid Flash sunk down to sit next to him, but Robin remained standing.

"What's next?" Kid Flash asked.

"Getting out."

Kid Flash drew out a sigh. "Yeah, but how are we supposed to get through the base? I can't carry both of you," he said.

Superboy had come to his senses at that time, the Kryptonite's effects losing hold. "Give... give me a minute and I'll be able to move." His eyes were closed and he was braced against the wall.

Robin crouched down next to him. "Do you think you'll be able to knock down the door?"

Superboy nodded.

Kid Flash shifted uncomfortably and then stood up. "I didn't finish looking around. Do you mind if I-?"

"Go ahead," Robin said. It's not like they were going anywhere. Besides, he told himself, they were alone and safe enough in the room. If Wally was curious, he might as well keep from tearing himself apart as they waited however long it would take for Superboy to recover.

Wally disappeared and Robin was left with Superboy. His throat was burning enough that Robin didn't attempt to strike up conversation. He leaned against the wall, allowing his eyes to slip closed, and focused on his breathing. He wondered how long the mission had dragged on. Longer than a day and the League would start worrying, mostly Batman. Batman would also probably be monitoring the internet and government files for any more information, or lack thereof.

Robin felt his thoughts coming less frequently and making little sense as they persisted. He didn't realize he'd fallen asleep until he was rudely awakened by having his shoulders shaken. He came to with a startled yelp, a testament to how tired he was. He never yelped. Superboy was standing over him, looking much better than before with a little color to his cheeks. "Hurry up," he said, voice echoing eerily. Had there been an echo before? "We're under attack."

While he had to admit that he was off his game, he'd been wakened enough times in the middle of the night for training sessions (and expected to be at his best), that it took little to no time at all for Robin to assume a combative stance. He was not, however, prepared for what they were fighting. Contrary to popular belief, Robin was not entirely fearless, and when faced by the hulking mass of a black-furred beast he found himself sincerely doubting his luck.

As far as appearances went, the creature was a far cry from a normal dog, though that was probably how he would have described it if he had been asked. He hadn't been asked though, luckily enough. It was an immense and snarling aggregation of greasy fur and yellowed teeth and claws, nothing like Wolf even in his worst moments. Of course, that could also be the lighting situation. The arrival of this creature seemed to have brought with it the dimming of lights.

Robin was positioned slightly behind Superboy, who had already begun moving at the creature with an angry yell. It was not, however, a successful charge. The creature met him midway and flipped him through the air, and Superboy landed with an uncharacteristic thud. It took seeing him unmoving for Robin to realize what was wrong. In the thick recesses of its neck scruff, the dog had a color studded with a familiar green rock.

"Oh come on," Robin hissed under his breath. Was everything against them today?

That was when the stench hit him. It rolled in waves from the creature and oozed from the walls. Despite its familiarity, Robin shuddered under the assault of it and wavered in his attack. That was the smell of Gotham's underbelly; it was the rot of old wood from damp houses, the open sewers that left the streets with a thick coating of refuse, the bloody handprints down the stairway to the underground, the grime and foul sludge collecting in the dregs of empty banks and abandoned schools... He smelled this every day, but never with such intensity. How could he have ever become used to such a thing?

He was answered by the voice from his nightmares, only this time he was real, substantial, and standing behind the snarling beast with his face in shadow. The hooded figure... "Well, this has been fun, don't you think? I could be angry, after all, you did break into my base and steal some of my things, but I quite admire your durability."

/Besides,/ the same voice echoed in his mind. /What good is anger when there are better places to use the energy. I prefer truth./

Robin felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise. So this guy could read minds? Luckily, Batman had been thorough in his training. He cleared his mind, simply focusing on recording this man's words.

"Smart one. Good. Very good," the hood crooned. "But I hadn't planned on reading your thoughts. I merely wanted to demonstrate what I could do and how I could help you."

"Help me?" Robin asked. "You attack me and then offer help."

"If you remember correctly, it wasn't I that shot you but one of those half-wits my colleagues insisted on hiring. And this now is not an attack. I merely needed to speak with you alone," he said, and he shot a disdainful look at the clone. "Without interference. And," he continued, "with any luck, your armor kept you from sustaining permanent damage. You're welcome."

Robin narrowed his eyes and kept his mouth shut.

"I wasn't always with the Light, you know. Once I was on the side of the angels. Oh, the League's not so bad, not at the beginning," the hood said. "Of course, everyone had their secrets. You would know that very well, Richard."

Robin, try as he might, could not contain the look of surprise at hearing his name.

"I'm a psychic, boy. You act like this is a stretch. But I have no plans in using identities, as I too have one I need to keep. As I said before, I'm offering help." The hood waited for a response and got none. "I feel for you, I do. You and your team, so young and easy to manipulate... The League has already done a number on your friends." He sighed. "I know you will never turn on them, and I'm not asking you to, but there will be a time when their true plans are revealed.

You think the Light is doing wrong, and in some cases they are, but in truth we are looking to preserve the rights of humanity. A worthy cause, no? And while some of our methods are quite barbaric, a few of us have had the sense to appeal to the decided nature of mortal flesh." He raised his hands before him in a look of submission. "I cannot claim to do all things right, but I do wish to redeem myself before my time is gone. The League is hiding things; intelligence, knowledge, information... One day they'll use you for something so apparently in the right that you will overlook the wrong."

"So what are they hiding? You may talk big, but that doesn't stand for the fact that all of this could be trivial information," Robin said finally.

"I'm just saying that the League plans on using you. Why would they so eagerly accept a Team which, pardon me on this, could only be a liability? It's the honest truth," he said. "There's no denying it."

"Maybe because we showed what we could do?"

"Maybe, or maybe because you showed what you couldn't. You showed all of your weaknesses, and now they know what you can't do. So they've set everything up for it. All you see is the finished product."

"Get to the point."

"The mole. They told you it was the Harper boy, but maybe all of you are the moles. The less humane members of the Light have infiltrated the League, and some of the heroes are supporting them. Don't tell me you hadn't noticed how quickly and easily they forgave the clone after he betrayed them!"

Robin felt himself being drawn into the hooded man's words and he quickly scrambled his thoughts trying to pull away. He was being force-fed doubts. They were just rumors, though... Right? Could they be true?"

"I would like to volunteer myself to keep you informed," said the hood. "I can't outright visit you and help you in this crusade against darkness, but I could contact you through other means... Say, dreams?" he asked. He didn't wait for a reply. "Don't worry about answering now. You can acknowledge my helpfulness when the time comes and when you're ready."

"Who are you?"

"I am Doctor Destiny. A fitting name, don't you think. I do have a habit of changing destinies," he said. "Now I'd hate for our little meeting to go noticed. You need to go back to the Cave to be with your Team. Especially in such trying times... It won't do for me to just let you go."

Robin tensed.

Doctor Destiny shook his head. "I won't hurt you, Richard. That's not what I want... But I think it would be best if we made a scene."

"A scene?"

"Why yes, of course. Think of it like a game. Let's play a game, Richard."

Doctor Destiny stepped forward and the lights flickered back on. They weren't as bright as before, but Robin looked up and finally managed to catch a glimpse of the hooded man's face, or lack thereof. He was staring into a yellowed skull that looked as if the flesh had not entirely decayed, with strings of tissue waving and pulling with the empty grin. Robin sincerely hoped it was a mask and not the man's actual face.

"What are you doing?" Robin asked, his voice lowering.

"Well, they can't think you've turned on them, can they? They can't see you working with me."

"So what are you going to do?"

The man laughed in response. "What do you think? I'll just rough you up a bit and send you home to play with the heroes. Maybe I'll kill a few of them... But, you know how it is."

Robin shook his head. "Kill? You said you were on my side?"

"On your side," he said. "But not theirs. These people," Doctor Destiny said, voice taking the fatherly tone that Batman's often did, "are not your friends, Richard. They may pretend to be, but it will soon be clear. The second you realize what the League is doing and retaliate, they'll stop supporting you and your little Team." He paused. "Oh, don't give me that look. It's obvious that you're their leader. The Atlantean may lead in title, but he always looks to you for the plans. They all do."

"Maybe, but they're loyal," Robin said, forgetting his training in silence. "And the Justice League would never turn. Maybe you're people would, but not mine."

Doctor Destiny seemed to be thinking for a moment before he crossed his arms. "On second thoughts... Perhaps I should give you an example."

"Of what?"

"Of just how quickly your friends would betray you."

Before Robin could answer, Destiny spread his arms and the world shook and the lights flickered out. When they snapped back on, Doctor Destiny had disappeared and in his place was another of the beasts. Robin felt fear grip at his chest as he realized he was alone in this fight.

He shifted his weight from side to side, trying to keep his muscles from cramping up, and he kept his eyes moving, never once stopping for more than a second on any particular target. Soon enough, one of them made a move, hurtling through the corridor with a snarl on its lips. Robin moved out of the way just in time and he brought up an arm in defense as the repercussions of the creature's collision with the end wall brought debris tumbling from the ceiling.

He waited to see if any more rubble would fill the passageway and then he was up again, a little slower to his feet than before, watching the other creatures. They were staring back at him with a startling lack of interest, and it was rather hypnotizing to watch as their bulky bodies moved forward with unexpected grace, fluidly advancing upon the Boy Wonder as he struggled to stand.

There were plenty chances from him to establish an advantage, a small chance at surviving the attack that would have helped his case immensely, but the hypnotic state he'd fallen into before was once again flooding Robin's brain and he swayed with weariness and exhaustion.

And then they passed him, moving behind him toward Superboy who was pulling himself up to his feet. Oh, right... The falling debris had covered a broken Kryptonite collar. They collided with him and the ground shook again and more of the ceiling fell to the ground.

Robin would have been worried about the structural integrity of the tunnels had he not just glimpsed the look of pure, inhuman rage on Superboy's face. And it wasn't directed at the beasts either, which had just been thrown aside like rag dolls. Superboy was looking straight at Robin, who had, in that time, managed to back himself up against one of the walls with the least amount of damage. He was shivering, and he wasn't sure if it was from cold or from the genuine fear that Superboy might kill him if he managed to reach him. Tears were threatening to break through his tough guy façade, and for once he wasn't sure if he could stop them.

Something inside him wished for it all to be a dream, a figment of his imagination. It wouldn't be a stretch with the dreams he had been having lately. But this time it felt too real, too definite.

Superboy was halfway across the room.

Robin had long since given up, but still his eyes searched the room for escape on old instinct.

He was grabbed by the front of his costume and lifted up, his feet coming off the ground. Robin scrabbled at Superboy's hands, the attempt futile, but the only thing in his mind was escaping and surviving. There was a roar in the back of skull, a pain that spread from the center and ran along his nerves. He was begging, actually begging, for Superboy to put him down. He didn't know what he was doing. They were friends. This wasn't supposed to happen.

Superboy jolted him forward and then slammed him into the wall. Pain exploded all along his back and he cried out in pain. _Stop, please..._

He was brought forward again, and Robin prepared for the impact. He looked up, meeting Superboy's eyes. Rather than seeing the usual bright blue, he saw the same empty, gaping holes of Doctor Destiny's mask. They swallowed him up, the only thing he could focus on as his back collided with the wall and his spine seemed to shatter...

_You'll always be alone,_ the voice in his head rasped. It faded in and out of existence... _pluck your feathers one-by-on_e...

Then everything stopped. The terrible cacophony ended and he was left with the ringing in his ears.

He could hear in the back of his mind, somewhere still sane, a voice repeating "You'll be okay. It's over. You're gonna be fine, Rob" over and over.

Robin wasn't sure how long this went on, because everything was coming in wave after wave and he was skipping between being aware and being plunged in the searing darkness. Voices and yells, blurred images and the vague outline of a sturdy frame standing protectively in front of him. Next he was in someone's arms and they were rough and none too gentle, but they were strong and they were trying and Robin caught the piercing blue eyes look down at him with a mix of pity. The frigid sting of evening air hit him with force and the shivers started again and he felt a hand on his forehead and someone was talking, voice broken and panicked, almost in the background and it all stopped and he was floating. The pain wasn't gone. He couldn't be dead. And then there was the gentlest touch in his mind, a sweet song that made him want to close his eyes and sleep forever, and everything faded, the pain receding for a time.

* * *

><p><strong>So what did you think?<strong>**Also, how about Doctor Destiny? Interesting enough villain? **

**And the ending... hehehe... **

****You know, I just realized that I managed this entire chapter with no breaks in time. *happiness*****

****Expect Chapter Six within one to two weeks. :)****


	7. Beneath Shattered Wings

**Here you go, another chapter. This is one of the first times I've met my dates on this story. I guess that's a good thing. Now, I can't promise Chapter Six for awhile, because I've got exams coming up and I'm working extra to pay for a trip I'm planning. April is Camp NaNoWriMo and my word goal is 20,000. That means 4 more chapters.**

**I'm rebelling for you guys. You're welcome.**

**I'm not entirely happy with this chapter, but it was needed to move the plot along. You guys are gunna hate me in a few chapters...**

**Anyways, enjoy this brief happy chapter! (I'm not always mean to these babies...)**

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><p>Chapter Five - Beneath Shattered Wings<p>

The first sound was the hum of conversation. It was like being underwater and listening to someone above. It diminished each time he thought he was ready to confront it. Richard's eyes were slow to peel open, heavy after a long time of no use. At first all he could see was the bleached white of ceiling, framed by the mahogany of a four poster bed, his bed. It took a moment before he noticed a familiar face in the corner of his vision. Alfred sat in a chair next to his bed, eyes half-closed and face serene. He hardly moved, breathing in and out deeply as he slept. Richard's eyes traveled slowly around, coming drowsily to rest on the slightly cracked door of his room. He was in his bed in his home in Gotham. He couldn't remember how he got there, and for a sickening moment, he realized he couldn't remember much of anything from the previous mission. It had a sort of dream-like haze, and all he could really remember was the pain.

But the pain wasn't entirely a memory. It continued to quake through his body even as he lay there, concentrating on his chest and emanating from his very core. Breathing was a struggle because of a painful weight that seemed to grow when he inhaled. He closed his eyes, focusing on relaxing his body. That was when Alfred woke.

"Master Richard?" came an inquisitive voice. Dick opened his eyes.

"Mhmm," was the only sound he managed to produce.

"You are awake," the butler exclaimed and he quickly rose from his chair and came to the boy's side. He put a hand on Dick's forehead and Dick couldn't help but flinch as the man's cold hand pressed against his sweaty brow. "The fever has yet to break," Alfred said aloud. "Is there anything I can bring you before I go and find Master Bruce?"

Dick shook his head.

"I'll be back very soon, young Master. If you need something while I'm away, there is a button," said Alfred, tapping the table, "that you may push to call me back up."

"Okay," Dick rasped quietly.

Alfred fixed the boy with a small, but nevertheless, bright smile and left the room. Dick watched him go and then closed his eyes, repositioning himself to a more comfortable place on the pillow. There was a small flock of machines around his bed, making quiet noises and keeping him from falling back into sleep. By the time he heard footsteps approach, he had gotten his breathing under control and was attempting to empty his mind of thoughts, which, with whatever medication he was on, was a difficult task.

"Dick?" A familiar voice brought him back and once again he opened his eyes. It was a little easier this time. Bruce was standing in front of him, his usual expression replaced with one of fatherly concern. Before he knew it, Dick was wrapped in a hug. They sat that way for a long time and it was almost like when he was a kid and when his nightmares kept him up each night. He would find Bruce then and they would sit this way until he fell back asleep and then he would wake up in his bed the next morning. But this was different. This time they both needed the comforting and that was all either wanted for that moment. It was only when he shook from the pain of sitting up for that long that Bruce pulled away and helped him back down to his pillow. "You really scared us," Bruce said quietly. "But I want you to know that I'm not angry with you. You saved Wally's life. Because of his elevated blood pressure, he might not have made it back. And you managed to bring back the entire team, more or less intact."

Dick nodded. "How long was I... out?"

"You were brought back to Mount Justice five days ago, and you were transferred here yesterday," said Bruce.

"Oh." He looked down at the bandage on his chest. A thought sent a shock of panic through his head. He didn't know what happened after the fight had ended. "Did everyone make... it out okay?"

"Kaldur'ahm managed to get Artemis out of the building and contact M'gann for help. The fact that she arrived save your life. She and Wally cleared a path and Conner carried you out," Bruce said, and the way he said their names led Dick to believe that Bruce didn't harbor any ill feelings toward the Team.

But that didn't stop the memories. It came back to him fast enough that his vision clouded. Somewhere, a monitor beeped and Bruce was holding his shoulders, trying to talk him out of whatever trance he was in. Robin, however, was back in the base with Superboy. Conner had carried him out? But he remembered so clearly... he'd been... He was dimly aware that he was hyperventilating and that two very concerned people were rushing about the room trying to find some way to help him.

Finally he gained control again and he was back, safe in his own bed in his own room. "Dick? Son, please look at me..." He tried to concentrate and managed enough to satisfy Bruce. "We lost you for a second. What happened?"

"It... it was a memory," Robin said. "I don't... it doesn't make any sense."

"Tell me what it was."

"I c-can't..."

"Dick, please. I need to know so I can help you."

Dick took a deep breath. "While I was rescuing Superboy... I-" He stopped. He couldn't say anything about Doctor Destiny... but what was he supposed to say. "I was attacked."

Bruce nodded. "We can see that."

"No, no... I mean, I was attacked after all of this. I had fallen asleep while I was waiting for Kid Flash to finish a perimeter check, and when I woke up... Superboy was..." Dick's voice broke. "He was going crazy. He attacked me and started slamming me against the wall... I thought I was dead."

Alfred Pennyworth had stopped moving about in the corner of the room and both he and Bruce were staring at Dick. He suddenly felt very uncomfortable and looked down at his hands to avoid their eyes. He knew how it sounded, especially since Superboy was the one to rescue him. The seconds ticked by like hours before Bruce cleared his throat.

"They said you'd been acting strange," he said simply.

Dick looked up, tempted to ask how. Bruce seemed to know what he wanted to hear.

"According to Kid Flash, he came back and found Superboy fighting a couple of guards. You were unconscious and Superboy was starting to panic. He said he had tried to wake you up and you started having some sort of fit."

"But I know what I saw! I felt it... It was so real," he continued softly.

Bruce didn't seem to know how to respond. He just sat at the edge of the bed, looking concerned but not convinced.

Dick knew it was a lost cause. There was something else he wanted to ask, but he was afraid of what the answer might be. He didn't want another disappointment. "When will I be able to help again?"

Bruce Wayne looked down with a sigh.

"Not for some time, Master Richard," said Alfred from where he stood. "You punctured a lung, among other things, and recovery will be slow."

"But... what about patrol? Or the missions?" Dick exclaimed.

Bruce shook his head. "I have been able to manage Gotham, even when you were away. This will be no different. And as for the Team, they will manage. Raquel will be rejoining them within the week. Besides, I think you need some time away from them to recuperate."

"For now," Alfred said, "I think it would be best if we left you to your rest." Bruce, in turn, nodded to both his ward and Alfred and strode from the room thus ending any hopes for conversation. Alfred promptly followed, leaving Dick to stare pensively at the door as it was firmly shut. Leave it to Bruce to set the mood.

Dick inched back down to his pillow and wriggled around for a bit to get comfortable, though he knew that was a lost cause. When he closed his eyes, he chanted over and over in his mind that those dreams wouldn't repeat themselves. He just wanted some peace.

* * *

><p>The only thing Richard ever hated about the manor was how ridiculously large it was. It took him nearly ten minutes to hobble to the kitchen, and even then he was out of breath and needed to stop for a bit. It was embarrassing, a hero with little more mobility than a senior citizen, but Alfred had told him time and time again that he was lucky to be able to walk with how close the fractured rib had come to hitting his heart, that he was lucky to even be alive. And wouldn't he rather deal with a time of inconvenience than pushing daisies. Dick had thought of some smart remark, but he kept it in his head rather than saying anything because he wasn't that rude and he would be stuck in the manor with the elderly butler for another month before he could even hope to go back to a lifestyle with some semblance to before.<p>

He wouldn't be allowed back on patrol or back into missions for much longer, as they had all agreed that it would be too dangerous to let him back so soon with such an injury (and Bruce was worried he'd suffer another panic attack). He wouldn't even be able to train like normal until Bruce watched him a few times and deemed him healthy enough to continue on his own.

As for school, it wouldn't be the first time he missed for a long period of time, and it would hardly be his last. He was, as far as he knew, ahead on his work and what he hadn't already done he could do at home. In fact, he was almost three months ahead on what he needed to get done, almost into the next year's school work. All this free time, and he would probably get even further.

All this free time... he sighed and pressed his forehead against one of the refrigerators in the kitchen. He hated being immobile. Dick craved action. He couldn't just mope around like this. He'd been cooped up for almost a month and that was way too much time. Sure, he was happy to finally leave his room, but he wanted to just leave the city altogether. He tugged at the handle on the fridge and pulled it open, standing in front of it and not looking for anything in particular, just letting the cold air flow out.

"Do you need something, Master Richard? Or are you just wasting electricity again."

Dick turned around and grinned at Alfred. "I'm not wasting electricity," he said. "It's going to a very good cause."

"And what might that be?" asked Alfred.

Dick shrugged. "Well, it feels nice. And that's got to count for something."

"As good a cause as any, young master," Alfred deadpanned.

"Oh, come on. It's not like getting a little cold air is going to cause Global Warming and the destruction of Earth as we know it," said Dick, leaning against the open door.

Alfred merely grimaced, something that might have been meant as a smile, and said, "That's what air conditioners are for."

"What? For earth's destruction?" Dick asked, suppressing a laugh.

"No," Alfred said firmly, dragging the boy away from the door. "For cold air. If you absolutely must be cooler, I will lower the temperature in the whole house."

"But then Bruce will complain."

"I will be sure to tell him who made the request," Alfred drawled. "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to finish polishing the china, as we will have dinner guests in the evening. Out of the kitchen with you, unless you need food or would like to help."

"Help with the china? Count me in," Dick said, bouncing up and down as much as his injuries would allow him.

"On second thoughts," the butler said, "I would prefer if you left me to my work alone."

"Afraid I'll break everything?"

"Of course not," he said, voice dripping with sarcasm. "Goodbye, Master Richard."

Dick made a show of prancing off, and once he was around the corner he let out something a mixture between a giggle and a snort, very manly he assured himself. While he still wasn't happy with the circumstances, that had done wonders with his mood, and despite the fact that his actions made him cough all the way up to his room, he decided it was well worth it.

* * *

><p>The call came in around noon. Dick was lying on his back on his bed, lazily balancing a pillow on his feet. His phone buzzed from the bedside table and he waited for a moment before blindly reaching over and picking it up. He held it above his face, sighing as he typed in the password. He had a few text messages, none sparking any interest. Not until he came to the last one.<p>

It was Barbara Gordon, asking if she could come and visit him. He frowned. It wasn't strange for her to come over to his house, she'd done so before, but he wasn't sure how he'd explain wound. Bruce had insisted that the media would have too many questions should the famous ward of the multi-billionaire suddenly drop with a bullet wound to the chest, so they'd talked after Dick had woken up and both agreed that Richard Grayson had no wish to return to the school for the time being, and that he'd opted to take home courses until he felt the need to return. In hindsight, Dick realized, it made him sound conceited. Surely when he returned there would be more bullying and beatings, as they would invariably mistake Dick's absence for cowardice.

He had friends, though, and that was the sad part. Though few and far between, he missed them. Barbara mostly, but he'd been making progress with Artemis. She still didn't have any idea who he was. Maybe he'd start hinting more. If she figured it out herself, it wouldn't be telling right? Same with Barbara. Dick had his suspicions that Commissioner Gordon knew exactly who Batman and Robin were, and maybe Babs would make the connection.

_Yeah_, he replied in the message. _When are you coming over?_ He put the phone down on his stomach and waited for the reply.

The buzz came quicker than expected. _Whenever you want._

_Idc_, he typed.

_How about one?_

Dick glanced at the time. _Sure._

_OK, see you_, came the reply.

Dick looked down at what he was wearing and inwardly groaned. He would have to get ready before she came, and that meant showering, which he hadn't done in... awhile… and finding something remotely presentable to wear. That shouldn't have been difficult, but it was. And finally, while he was doing all of this, he needed to think up a good reason why he would have thick bandages wrapped around his chest and a terrible wheezing cough.

* * *

><p>One o'clock came sooner than Richard Grayson expected. He had hardly sat down in the front sitting area when the doorbell chimed and he watched Alfred scurry from the kitchen, looking very disheveled, to open the door. It was with exasperation that he stood and made his way toward the entrance. There he found Barbara, dressed casually and looking around with wonder at all of the decor. She'd been there before, but that didn't mean she wasn't amazed how some people lived each time she walked in. "Hello, Babs. Fancy meeting you here," Dick said once he'd walked up beside her.<p>

She noticed him and smiled brightly, nearly knocking him over with one of her hugs. He tried not to flinch away. "Hi Dick," she said. "What have you been up to?"

"Oh you know, just counting my money in my room made of solid gold. Customary billionaire stuff," he said.

Barbara snorted. "Sure, sure. And I've been swinging from rooftop to rooftop fighting criminals and helping old ladies cross the street."

Dick raised his eyebrows. "Well, there /are/ plenty of old ladies to help."

"Oh stop it you. I came over to hang out and see how you were, not to have silly banter," she said.

Before either could say more, the door opened and James Gordon walked in holding a case with Alfred trailing behind him holding another. When he saw Dick he smiled. "Is Mr. Wayne in?"

"The study, second floor, two doors down to the right," replied the boy, and the commissioner nodded his thanks. The two made their way up the staircase.

"What's your dad up to?" Dick asked once they were out of earshot.

Barbara shrugged. "Something about old case files. I don't know why he'd want to bother Mr. Wayne about them, though."

"Was he planning on coming anyways?"

"Yes," she said. "Oh come on, Dick. I'm not just here because my dad made me. I wanted to come."

"Uh, huh... So are you staying for dinner?"

"Can I?" she asked.

"Sure, if you don't mind being stuck with me and some of Bruce's clients tonight. But before you try to get out of it, Alfred's getting out the special dishes and whatever he's whipping up in the kitchen smells delicious," he said. "Whoever this is, Bruce is trying to impress them."

"Sounds good," Barbara said. "But you don't actually know who is coming?"

"No, it's always much more fun if you don't know," he said. "I like to try and guess. Besides, if I don't know, then I can't be held accountable whenever I... mess up."

"You little troll," she said. "I want in on it."

"This is going to be fun. So feeling the aster!"

"The what?"

* * *

><p>Dinner was... interesting, to say the least. He was glad for Barbara's company, as the clients were rather hard to crack. He'd lied earlier when he said he didn't know who they were. Well, sort of. He didn't know until he saw the man and then he suddenly realized how difficult his dinner games would be. As a way to stay sane, he had long ago invented a ploy for boring dinner parties and fundraisers. He knew that Bruce knew what he was doing, but the man had yet to stop him and he figured that he could consider Bruce a part of his plans. Sometimes his surrogate father even played along, providing Dick the perfect opportunities to strike. This night was no different.<p>

After the men had gone off to talk in private and the commissioner followed Alfred to the kitchen to have a conversation to pass the time until food was served, Dick and Barbara had snuck off to plan. It was a very basic plan, and it mostly involved party tricks and practical jokes, but it was amusing nevertheless and he could tell that Barbara was eager to try it.

Of course, both were quick to escape once the shouting started, and James looked down with embarrassment as Dick and Barbara ran off. Bruce stared after them impassively before taking a swig of his drink and continuing the conversation as if the last prank of the night had never happened. Dick was thankful that Bruce had decided not to break character, for the last trick was taking it too far and he was sure he'd hear about it later.

They escaped to the roof and both were laughing until their sides hurt, or in Dick's case, until he was coughing enough that he couldn't breathe. Once he assured a frightened Barbara that no, he wasn't dying, and no, she didn't need to get Alfred, they calmed down and stopped above his bedroom.

"That was great," she said, still trembling from the laughter.

"Yeah." He smiled at her.

"Do you do this often?"

"All the time," he said, and he wasn't sure whether she was talking about the dinner pranks or sitting up on the roof. The answer was the same for both.

"It must be nice," Barbara said, and Dick noticed a change in her voice. He looked over to see her staring at him. "You have no idea what it's like in Gotham nowadays. Sure, you go to school there but... the city is just..." She closed her eyes and shook her head. "Sometimes I can't even sleep at night, because I can hear what's going on outside and I just know this will be the day that they find my house and my family, and we'll be the ones on the other side of the equation." She looked down. "And then there are people like you and Mr. Wayne. You make a living in the city, but you don't know what life is like there."

Dick couldn't meet her eyes. He couldn't even look in her direction. He did know what it was like. As Robin, he saw the scum of the earth that called Gotham home and he couldn't help but feel guilty, even if he knew it wasn't his fault. _Oh, I can assure you that I know what the city is like_, Dick wanted to say, but he couldn't. "I'm sorry," he said.

She gave him a confused look. "Why should you be? It isn't your fault."

_Yes it is._ "I know but, I kind of feel guilty, you know? I know what it is like out of this lifestyle, and being in it for a while, you forget," he said. Dick sighed and decided to change the subject. "How is school?"

"What do you expect? It's school," she said. "Semester exams are coming up in a week. Will you be taking them?"

"Already took them," he said.

"Oh. Are they easy?" she asked.

"Yes," said Dick.

Barbara Gordon suddenly threw up her hands. "Why am I asking you, of all people? Of course you would think they're easy!"

"They are super easy, Babs, and you are very smart," he said, smiling at her dramatics.

"Okay, now I know you're pulling my leg," she said, swatting at him.

"Am not," he exclaimed childishly.

"Uh huh," she retorted. This went on for some time until Dick reached out and grabbed her leg. She giggled and pulled away. "See, told you, you little brat. You are pulling my leg!" The laugh fest began again as they play fought, pointless arguments with the occasional swat at one another.

Unfortunately, one of these swats caused quite a bit more pain than intended. It was only when Barbara saw her young friend doubled over in pain and clutching at his chest did she realize he wasn't faking it. That was when she ran downstairs as fast as she could, as she was afraid to move him, and almost flattened Alfred. She didn't say anything, only grabbed the poor old butler by the arm and dragged the man up to the roof. "He's having some sort of fit," she finally said breathlessly right before they came upon him.

* * *

><p>Richard Grayson guessed it was just his luck, right as the first wave hit him, to be well on the way to recovery and the first time he could prove it to Bruce, that he broke. His body shuddered and he could feel the sting of tears in his eyes. No crying, he told himself over and over. No crying, not with Barbara around. He would just have to hold out.<p>

But as the night went on, it became worse, and during their last conversation he could hardly move. The final blow was not one of Barbara's swats, as she must have thought, but a laugh that quickly turned to barking coughs. It was a laugh, his customary cackle, that broke the camel's back, or so to say. How embarrassing. Though being embarrassed was far from the top of his list of worries.

As the world quaked around him, he had the sense that his companion left and that he was alone on the rooftop. For a terrifying few moments he thought he had scared her away, or some nonsense like that. He stilled, the wheezing breaths continuing and he waited for his heart rate to even, and then he heard the footsteps approaching and two gentle hands pulled him up. He could sort of hear Alfred's voice and then Barbara's. He didn't want her to see him like this. A month ago, he would never have let it get to this.

But that was a month ago, not now. With both supporting him, they went down the stairs and Dick was vaguely aware of being pushed into his bed and Alfred saying something about "finding Master Bruce" before the room became a bit more empty.

He thought he was alone until he heard a quiet voice to his right. "Richard?" He tried to reply and only succeeded in making a quiet grunt. "Dick, what happened?"

"Coughing fit," he muttered, eyes still squeezed shut.

"Because you've totally done that before."

Dick sighed, flinched when it caught in his throat, and then sluggishly moved his arm to tap his chest. The then shaped his hand like a gun and simply said 'pow'.

"No," she said. "You're joking."

"Look like I'm joking?"

"But-"

The sound of the opening door cut off what she was going to say and from the nervous squeak that escaped her lips, he could only guess Bruce had arrived in full defensive mode. Curse the bat-sense. He opened his eyes, squinting against the artificial light, and saw Barbara pressed against the wall as Bruce hurriedly pushed pass. "What happened?" the man asked through gritted teeth in a voice very similar to the one he used as Batman.

Dick somehow found the strength to sit up and offered Bruce a smile. "Nothing, I'm fine. Something just got caught in my throat." Bruce didn't look like he bought it, so Alfred must have told him. Barbara was glaring at him from the back of the room, and Alfred, who had just reentered, raised an eyebrow at him. Dick let a nervous laugh escape his lips. "Yep, just fine. Great. You can go back to your meeting now." Another set of footsteps announced the arrival of James Gordon. This was getting out of hand.

"You left me alone with your clients, Mr. Wayne. They're getting worried." Gordon stopped at the doorframe. "Is everything alright?"

Bruce met Dick's eyes for an uncomfortable amount of time before narrowing them and turning away. By the time he was beside the Commissioner at the door, he had already wiped his face clean of any negative emotion. "Alfred, tell them I will be joining them shortly. I have something I need to do."

"Yes, Master Bruce," the grey haired man said with a curt nod. He opened the door and looked to James Gordon.

"Oh, uh yes," the commissioner said when he noticed the butler holding the door. He looked back at Barbara, who was perched on the edge of Dick's bed, a question in his eyes, and then he shook his head and walked out past Alfred. Alfred closed the door quietly behind him, and the two teenagers were once again left along in Dick's room.

"When did it happen?" Barbara asked, finally breaking the silence.

"About a month ago," Dick replied. There was no use lying about his injuries now. He was quickly trying to come up with a story in head to justify getting them. "I was shot in the chest."

"What about the bruises?"

That's when Dick realized he hadn't entirely covered up the fading bruises across his body. He'd gotten so used to seeing them that they'd just become another part of him. "Eh... hold up. We were in a bank."

"I never heard about this on the news," Barbara said, eyes glinting.

"It was taken care of quickly," Dick replied.

Her mouth was pressed into a hard line. "And the police never got any calls."

"It was handled quietly by Batman." His story was quickly getting out of hand. Barbara was just too good. Dick found it almost as hard to lie to her as it was to lie to Bruce or Wally. His mind was racing, and he was about to say something else when Barbara's next words brought his train of thought to a halt.

"It was a mission, wasn't it... With the Justice League?"

Even with all of his training, which honestly hadn't helped much lately, Dick felt his control over his emotions slip away. He was staring at Barbara Gordon slack jawed and eyes wide.

"I knew it," she exclaimed grinning. "I thought you were with him all along, but I needed proof."

Dick's mouth opened and shut for a moment before he found words. "That's ridiculous! I'm not Robin," he said. And then he realized his mistake when Barbara grinned viciously. She'd never said who he was.

"Damn," he said, breaking his own rule against cussing for the umpteenth time in the past few months. He had meant for her to find out eventually, but he hadn't planned for now.

"So you are?" Barbara asked. "You're Robin?"

"Yeah," he said, his voice low.

"And Mr. Wayne is..." She looked surprised. "Batman?"

"Yeah, that's why your dad was bringing him the old case files," he said.

"So my dad knows?"

Dick shrugged. "That or he thinks that Bruce has connections." He hid his face in his hands. "Aw man," he said, voice coming out muffled. "If this bullet wound doesn't kill me, Bruce will." He looked up. "You understand why I'm not allowed to tell, right Babs?"

"Yeah, yeah," Barbara said. "Secret identities and whatnot. You know I'm not going to tell." Dick just stared at her. "Really," she said. "I promise."

Richard Grayson let out a long sigh. "Well, we might as well get his over with. Bruce is gonna find out sooner or later."

* * *

><p><strong>So what do you think? Leave me a review with any ideas, predictions, or pointers! :) I don't bite (hard).<strong>

**Also, would anyone be interested in seeing a oneshot of the events at dinner?**


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